


Wicked Winds

by sarahkwut



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018), Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018) RPF
Genre: Angst, Betrayal, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Love, M/M, Multi, Other, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:54:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 140,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26538412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarahkwut/pseuds/sarahkwut
Summary: Nicholas Scratch winds up at the Academy of Unseen Arts after being kicked out of several others for being too smart - and too powerful - for his own good. He’s got a chip on his shoulder and he’s not in Greendale to make friends. But then he meets Sabrina Spellman, a witch that’s not only beautiful, but just as up for breaking the rules as him.Except she wants nothing to do with him.His old friend Prudence places a bet that he can’t get her to give into him - but things get complicated as he not only starts to fall for Sabrina, but a deadly darkness settles over Greendale.
Relationships: Nicholas Scratch/Sabrina Spellman
Comments: 433
Kudos: 201





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Well, here we go again. I can't stay away, so I hope you don't mind another story from me. Turns out, writing fanfic is a GREAT way to destress from grad school work - which is all screenwriting (and I love every single minute of it). 
> 
> This piece takes place after Sabrina's Dark Baptism and she's fully embraced her witch half. Don't worry though, the mortal half is still there too... And Nick? He's the new guy. With his own agenda. 
> 
> This is going to be fun. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it.

“Nicholas Scratch.”

The High Priest of the Church of Night paced the space behind his desk, hands clasped behind his back, his presence meant to be commanding. He intended to make sure his guest understood he was the one in charge.

“Faustus Blackwood.”

The High Priest’s tall, imposing figure paused his long strides to look down his thin nose at the young man slouched in the chair before him. The boy – nearly a man now – didn’t back down the way others in his place most certainly would have. Instead, he gazed right back at him without any sense of fear. Blackwood clasped his hands behind his back once more and resumed pacing.

“Welcome to the Academy of Unseen Arts.”

“Happy to be here,” Nick quipped in a bored tone. Blackwood shot him a look but continued his pacing.

“I believe this is your fourth school in two years. Quite a feat, considering there are only a handful of such schools in existence.”

“I’ve ran through all the ones in Europe,” Nick confirmed. “Hence why I’m here.”

He wasn’t entirely thrilled about it, but it beat the alternative.

“From all accounts, you’re an exceptionally talented warlock.” Blackwood paused in front of him once more, the desk between them. He placed his hands on the ornate wood and leaned forward. “With an equally exceptional ability to get yourself in trouble.”

Nick said nothing. He had long ago learned not to defend his actions. It wasn’t like he had much of a defense in the first place. Generally speaking, he knew the consequences of his actions. He just chose not to worry about them. Blackwood pushed off the desk but remained standing before his newest warlock.

“You will find, Mr. Scratch, that we do things quite a bit differently here at the Academy of Unseen Arts. There is a zero-tolerance policy for unauthorized magic. Should you be discovered practicing such endeavors, the consequences will be immediate and swift.” Blackwood crossed his arms. “Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal,” Nick answered.

Without warning, he was suddenly sat bolt upright in his chair by a force not of his own making.

“What…”

“This is a school, Mr. Scratch, not a couch in some mortal’s home. You will sit up straight, respect your elders, and follow the rules – rules put into place for the safety and protection of yourself and your classmates. Do you understand?”

Nick wanted to say ‘no.’ He wanted to question Blackwood’s rules, if they were actually put into place for safety and protection or to squash warlocks – and witches – from reveling in their own power. He had heard tales of Faustus Blackwood and how he ran things. He didn’t know what was true and what wasn’t, but he imagined the truth was somewhere in the middle – and he likely wanted no part of it.

Still, he didn’t have many options left.

“Yes sir,” he said instead. Blackwood raised an eyebrow at the agreement. He had expected push back.

“You will find, Mr. Scratch,” he continued, “that if you abide by the structure this Academy has created, you will flourish as a warlock. Everything you need to know can be learned here.”

Again, Nick had his doubts. Still, he didn’t voice them.

“Is this orientation over?” he asked. “I’m sure I’m supposed to be in class.”

“Nearly,” Blackwood nodded once. “Do you have any questions?”

 _Plenty,_ Nick thought.

“I hear there is a sanctum of restricted books,” he said instead. He knew there was. He had already found it after hearing about it in his, well, he called them ‘travels.’ “Something the more advanced students can have access to.”

“There is such a place,” Blackwood said carefully, suspicions heightened. “Cassius, our librarian, is diligent about who comes and goes.”

“I assume I will be considered an advanced student?” Nick continued.

“You will have to prove yourself,” Blackwood countered. “While your reputation precedes you, not all of it is good. I will need to know you are not only capable of advanced magics, but trustworthy.”

“Isn’t the lack of trustworthiness a standard trait of the warlock?” Nick asked.

“In some regards,” Blackwood agreed. Nick could sense the man’s skepticism. He didn’t care. He knew he put off a dangerous vibe, an aura most steered clear of. It was how he preferred it. “Perhaps in your case, it’s loyalty I’m looking for.”

Nick only nodded, eyes never leaving Blackwood. He was already sure his loyalty would never be to Blackwood nor the Academy of Unseen Arts. It would be to himself. Always. Still, he would play nice. For now.

Blackwood considered him for a moment longer before he moved a hand to open a desk drawer. He produced a piece of parchment.

“This, Mr. Scratch, is your course schedule.”

Nick reached for it and read it eagerly. Despite his tendency to not last long on a school roster, he did like to learn, and he knew from his research that Greendale held a lot of ancient magic. He didn’t know that he would like the place very much – it was too quaint – but he was willing to give it a try, at least long enough to uncover its secrets. He scowled as he read over it.

“Chorus?” he stated. “You think I’m going to be in the chorus?”

“All witches and warlocks must participate in the arts,” Blackwood explained. “It makes for a well-rounded individual. Unfortunately for you, our other option for the quarter, watercolor, is full.”

“I’m honestly not sure which would be worse,” Nick stated. He continued to scan the schedule. He didn’t like what he was seeing. “Father Blackwood, I’m not sure whoever put together this schedule took my abilities into account.”

“Oh?” Blackwood asked.

“Binding basics?” Nick read. “Intermediate demonology? I conjured a hellhound on my first attempt. And when he escaped my circle, I bound him in a jar – using a spell I taught myself because that lackluster school certainly wasn’t capable of teaching me a damned thing.”

Blackwood appeared at a loss for words at the young warlock’s declaration. A few beats passed before he lifted his chin and resumed his superior manner.

“Prove yourself, Mr. Scratch, and we will discuss moving you into more difficult classes.”

“Or independent study,” Nick volleyed. “Frankly, I could probably teach your conjuring professor a thing or two.”

“Careful, Mr. Scratch,” Blackwood warned. “No one likes a cocky warlock.”

Nick bit his lip from retorting that plenty of people did, in fact, like a cocky warlock – at least for a night.

“Fine,” he said instead. “I’ll play along. I expect I will test out of these classes,” he waved the parchment, “within the week.”

“We shall see,” Blackwood said. He didn’t especially like the boy’s sharp tongue, nor the way he pushed back, but he was intrigued all the same. A warlock of this boy’s supposed caliber hadn’t walked through the doors of the Academy of the Unseen Arts since Edward Spellman. “Luke?”

A warlock not much older than Nick emerged from the shadows. Nick wondered if he had been there the whole time. He was certain he hadn’t been. He was especially observant, always on the lookout for a hint of danger or a good time, whichever came first. He would have noted the boy wearing what appeared to be some sort of uniform.

“Yes, Father?”

“Please escort Mr. Scratch to the choir room.”

Luke nodded and stepped forward. Nick remained seated and looked between Blackwood and this Luke character.

“I don’t need an escort,” he stated. “I showed myself around when I first got here.” He had arrived in the middle of the night and rather than turn in, he had roamed the school to get a lay of the land, careful to avoid the night warlock patrolling the hallways looking for rule breakers like himself.

“I think you do,” Blackwood said with no room for argument. “Go now. My wife, Lady Blackwood, is expecting you.”

Nick had no choice but to follow Luke out of the office. The pair walked in silence through the school’s cavernous halls.

“So,” Nick tried when the silence became insufferable, “what’s there to do around here?”

“Plenty,” the warlock offered. “Most of us hang out at Dorian’s.”

“Dorian’s,” Nick repeated. “Noted.”

Another few beats of silence lapsed between them.

“You know,” Luke said with a tone that told Nick he was trying to show more bravery than he actually had, “you will do well to follow Blackwood’s guidance. He knows what’s best.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Nick said. They stopped outside of a large oak door.

“This is the choir room,” Luke told him. “As Father Blackwood said, Lady Blackwood is expecting you.”

“I can hardly wait,” Nick muttered. He pushed through the door with an obvious chip on his shoulder. He had been the new guy plenty of times. This was just another one of those times.

The eyes of a dozen or so students, mostly witches, fell on him. He had just enough time to register the look of curiosity he had come to expect when he first walked into a classroom as the new kid before a voice, clear and strong, filled the air.

His eyes found her easily.

Witches weren’t supposed to be angelic, but this one was. Her hair was as white as moonbeams, her lips a color red that screamed danger and therefore pulled him right in. Her skin was pale and smooth as porcelain, yet life coursed through it, coloring her cheeks a soft pink. A black headband held her curls in place.

And her voice.

Her voice, siren-like in its tone, seeped into his very veins.

“Ms. Spellman, if you please?” Lady Blackwood cut her off with a kindness that was in direct contrast to her husband’s. “That was beautiful, of course, but it seems our newest member has arrived.” She turned to Nick with a kind smile and he realized she was very pregnant. He decided he felt sorry for her. He could sense she was a decent witch. It was a shame she was married to such a man as Blackwood if the rumors about him were true. “Mr. Scratch, I presume.”

“I’m Nicholas,” Nick confirmed. His eyes flickered towards the blonde girl.

_Spellman._

“Welcome, Mr. Scratch,” she continued. “We are glad to have a warlock as talented as I hear you are joining our ranks.”

“And yet I’m in choir class,” Nick couldn’t help himself. He saw the Spellman girl smirk out of the corner of his eye. If Lady Blackwood was offended, she didn’t let on.

“Can you sing a few lines of this for me?” she requested. She passed a sheet of music to Nick. He gave it a precursory glance. It was a song his mother used to sing while she did chores around the house. Of course. He did what he always did when those memories forged to the front and put them on the metaphorical shelf in his brain. “Nicholas?”

“Yeah, fine,” he said, snapping out of his reverie. He cleared his throat and sang the first four lines on the page. He looked to Lady Blackwood when he finished. Her smile was wide.

“Very good,” she praised. She turned to search her students. Her eyes landed on the Spellman girl. “Ms. Spellman, I believe we found a tenor to match your soprano.” Nick looked to the girl. She looked bored at the news. He smirked a bit. “We’re nearly done for the day, Mr. Scratch,” she told him. “Go ahead and take your place just there.” She pointed towards the risers. Nick did as instructed. “Now, let’s pick up from Sabrina’s solo, shall we?”

Twenty minutes later, Nick found himself searching for the blonde Spellman girl in the sea of students streaming out of classrooms when classes dismissed. Her light hair should have been a beacon, but she managed to disappear into the crowd.

“Dammit,” he muttered. He let go of his failed conquest for the moment and turned towards the entry. If he remembered correctly, his next class – freaking intermediate demonology – was in the opposite wing from the choir room. He ignored the eyes on him as he made his way through the crowds.

“Nicholas Scratch.”

Nick stopped and turned to his left.

“Prudence Night.”

“Blackwood,” she corrected with a smug smirk. “I found my father.”

“Faustus Blackwood,” Nick observed. “Fitting.”

“Thank you,” she smirked bigger. She looked him up and down. “Looks like you finally got yourself kicked out of Europe.”

“Something like that,” he admitted.

“What did you do?” came another voice.

He noted the two girls behind her when the red haired one, Dorcas he believed was her name, spoke up.

“You two are still around?” he countered.

“They are my sisters,” Prudence narrowed her eyes at him in warning.

“And I seem to recall you being rather fond of us at one point,” the dark haired one added. Agatha, he recalled.

“Very fond,” Dorcas agreed as she batted her long eyelashes.

“Not of my own violation,” Nick reminded them. The sisters smirked. He turned his eyes back to Prudence. “Ruin any lives today?”

“Not yet, but it’s still early,” she quipped. “What about you? Screw anything that breathes today?”

“Not yet, but it’s still early,” Nick parroted. Prudence snorted.

“I’m sure you’ll make your way through all the fresh meat in no time.” Her tone dripped with sarcasm.

Nick opened his mouth to retort, but the blonde from choir class appeared through a doorway. She was walking with a goofy looking warlock wearing a bowtie and a taller, plain girl, talking animatedly with her hands. He was momentarily struck dumb, rooted to his spot as he watched her pass through the entry. There was just _something_ about her.

Prudence followed Nick’s gaze.

“Don’t even think about it,” she stated. “She’s as pretty _and_ as pure as the first fallen snow.”

“She doesn’t look so innocent,” Nick stated. No one, witch or mortal, wore that shade of lipstick without at least a streak of rebellion in them.

“It would be a waste of your time,” Dorcas added. She put a seductive hand on Nick’s shoulder. He gave her a look she ignored. “But if you wanted to have some fun…” She tried her most seductive look.

“Nice try,” he scoffed and pushed her hand off him, breaking her attempt at messing with his head. “Been there, done that.”

“Prudence is right though,” Agatha cooed. “Sabrina Spellman is a waste of your time. Besides, she dates some _mortal_.”

“They broke up,” Dorcas supplied. “Remember, Agatha? Right after her Dark Baptism. It was all very dramatic. It rained for three days because she wouldn't stop crying. I ruined a pair of suede boots because of her…”

“She can control the weather?” Nick asked curiously. That was some magic he could appreciate.

“It was a coincidence,” Prudence stated. “Tropical storm remnants came through. These two started the rumor that it was Sabrina’s broken heart making it flood and half of this bloody school took it as fact.” The sisters looked proud of themselves. “Trust us, Nicky. Sabrina Spellman is not where you should focus your attention.”

“And where should I focus that attention?” Nick wondered.

“In your case?” Prudence looked down her nose in the same way Blackwood had and in the moment, Nick saw the faint resemblance. “I would say it should be on staying out of trouble.” She smirked. “Yet trouble does always seem to find you, doesn’t it, Nicky?”

She drifted off. Her sisters followed.

“There’s that,” Nick said to himself, not entirely pleased to have ran into the three of them. He had tangled with them while they were abroad the year before, and it seemed the threesome had come back to haunt him.

“Mr. Scratch?” An imposing woman with red hair and a sharp look stood halfway up the stairs, peering down at him. “Are you lost?”

“No,” he stated, wondering who she was. He didn’t bother to question how she knew his name. Blackwood was right – his reputation tended to precede him with a school’s staff. “I was just on my way to class.”

“Hurry along,” she stated with a nod. “You won’t want to be late.”

Nick bit the inside of his cheek to keep the retort he had on his tongue at bay. Instead, he resumed his path to class, now aware that he was one of the last ones milling around the entry.

Twelve hours in Greendale.

He was already over it.

* * *

Sabrina was in a decent mood as she sat down to lunch. Any day she made it to lunch without setting off Blackwood, her aunt, or both was generally a good day and she had made it nearly a full week without disrupting their precious status quo.

“Hi.”

She turned at the foreign voice.

The new warlock from choir class stood before her, leather jacket on, tray held haphazardly in one hand.

“Nicholas Scratch,” he said. “Nick Scratch. Mind if I join you?”

He didn’t wait for her to agree. He put his tray down and dropped to the bench beside her.

“Have a seat then,” she muttered. Nick smiled. “I’m Sabrina…”

“Spellman,” he finished. “You’re Edward Spellman’s daughter.” He smirked and pulled out the line everyone in a position of authority liked to use about him. “Your reputation precedes you.”

“You know my father’s work?” she asked curiously.

“I’m a fan,” Nick nodded. “His ideas were controversial. I like a good controversy.”

Sabrina considered him, not quite sure how to take him. There was no doubt that he was handsome, but she was also sure he was dangerous. It practically rolled off of him. Her guard went up.

“Because he married my mother?” she asked with a hint of a challenge.

“He was a rebel,” Nick shrugged. “But I also appreciate some of his ideas. I’m hoping to read his journals while I’m here.”

“Good luck with that,” Sabrina stated. “ _I_ haven’t even read his journals and I’m his daughter.”

“You haven’t read them?” Nick asked. “Seriously?”

“Like you said – they are controversial. Blackwood keeps them in the sanctum under lock and key for only the most advanced students. Cassius, the librarian, brings them out one at a time and watches you the whole time. So I’m told. I can’t seem to make my way into the sanctum, even.”

It certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. She had simply been caught every time.

Nick smirked, sensing he was right about her – there was rebellion under her fair skin.

“Lucky for you, I’m an advanced student,” he told her. “Be nice to me and I might be able to help you out.”

Sabrina’s eyes narrowed as she turned towards him, her lunch abandoned.

“You’re an advanced student?” she questioned. “You sure about that? Advanced students typically don’t show up in choir class. They get an ‘independent study’ pass on the art requirement.”

“Technically I have to prove to Blackwood that I’m an advanced student,” Nick amended. He was slightly taken back that she hadn’t fallen for his subtle brag the way most did. “But it won’t take long. I’ll be out of choir and these crap classes by the end of the week.”

“Someone’s sure of themselves,” Sabrina observed. “I would say ‘good luck’ as getting Blackwood to believe you are capable of more than hovering dinner plates is impossible, but you are a warlock. You already have a leg up on that sexist…” She trailed off, realizing she may have said too much. Nick’s own smirk simply grew.

“Not a fan of our fearless leader?”

“We’ve had our differences,” she said diplomatically, turning back to her food.

“I bet you have,” Nick said, his curiosity spiked. “Tell me, Spellman, is it true that you can control the weather?”

Sabrina dramatically rolled her eyes.

“Freaking Weird Sisters,” she muttered under her breath. Nick chuckled. “No, I cannot control the weather. If I could, I would have long ago whipped up a tornado to pick those three up and take them far, far away from Greendale.”

Nick’s amusement grew.

“Not a fan of Prudence, Agatha, and Dorcas either,” he noted. “Is there anyone at this school you like?”

“I like most people,” she informed him. “So long as they deserve it.” She looked at him for a moment. “The jury is still out on you.” Nick laughed outright.

“You can trust me, Spellman,” he assured her.

“I think it’s best I be the judge of that,” she stated. She could already tell trusting him might not be in her best interest. “I hear you have left a trail of chaos in your wake.”

“Is that what they’re saying about the new kid?” Nick wondered.

“Is it true?” Sabrina pressed.

Nick decided he liked her. She had few qualms about pushing back, questioning things. She seemed strong-willed. He wasn’t sure if the ‘pure’ part of Prudence’s description of her was as accurate as Prudence seemed to think it was. The ‘pretty’ part, however, was bang on.

“I’ve found the truth is generally somewhere in the middle,” he said. “What you've heard about me probably isn’t wrong – but it probably isn’t entirely accurate either.”

“So you didn’t just summon not one but two hellhounds in intermediate demonology when you were supposed to be summoning lesser demons just to prove you could?” Sabrina questioned.

“Satan, news travels fast around here,” he muttered. She looked expectant as she waited for him to answer her. He sighed. “I don’t know how they got ‘hellhounds’ out of what I did. I summoned Amon. He has the body of a wolf, so I guess that isn’t such a stretch for a hellhound for someone unfamiliar with the demonic realm.”

“But…,” Sabrina sputtered, “Amon is…”

“A marquis of Hell,” Nick finished. He stuffed a forkful of salad into his mouth. “He vomits flames which is a pretty cool trick.”

Sabrina stared.

“Nicholas…”

“Nick,” he corrected.

“Nick,” she stated, “that’s… impressive.” She could appreciate the feat for what it was. He nodded his agreement and took another bite of his lunch. “What did Brother Pratt say when you did that?” she asked curiously.

“Once he picked his jaw up off the floor?” Nick said. “He asked how I did it.” He broke off a piece of his roll. “Well, after he put out the fire. Amon breathed on his desk.”

“If you can do that, why are you in Intermediate Demonology?” Sabrina questioned.

“Because Blackwood said I have to prove myself.”

A shadow passed over her fair face.

“He said that to me, too,” she stated. “But I’m still fighting for the right to take the classes I deserve to be in. If I conjured a demon like that, he would call me to his office and ream me out for jeopardizing the safety of others or some other trumped up accusation and find a way to punish me he hasn’t thought of yet. You, however? He wil have you in advanced demonology by the end of lunch, just because you are a warlock.”

“You sound bitter, Spellman,” Nick observed.

She looked annoyed.

“Blackwood is sexist,” she informed Nick. “He thinks witches should be seen and not heard. I happen to disagree.”

“Me too,” Nick shrugged.

“Wait, you do?” Sabrina asked, momentarily sidetracked. “I thought all warlocks thought themselves the superior race…”

“That’s presumptuous,” he observed.

“Sorry,” Sabrina said quickly, realizing she had judged him based purely on her limited knowledge of warlocks in the Church of night. “I just assumed…”

“You assumed wrong. It shouldn’t be about gender. Or race or creed or anything else for that matter. It should be about sheer talent and what you’re capable of doing with it. Some witches and warlocks are meant for the mundane household magic. Others,” he gave her a pointed look, “are meant to wield their power differently.”

A warlock Sabrina knew to be called Adam wandered by. He made eye contact with Nick and gave a little smirk and jerk of his chin by way of greeting. Nick returned the smirk. Sabrina rolled her eyes at the blatantly display of flirting.

“What’s your story anyway, Scratch?” she asked once Nick’s attention was back on her. “It’s not often we get new students after the start of the term.”

“I had a… change in academic plans,” Nick offered. Something about the girl next to him made him want to keep the full truth to himself. “Here’s to hoping the Academy of Unseen Arts can match my academic standards.”

“Well, you may be getting your wish,” Sabrina looked past him. “Here comes Blackwood.”

“Nicholas.” The man stopped on the other side of their table.

“Father Blackwood,” Nick replied. “Long time, no see.” He heard Sabrina snort into her soup.

“Careful,” Blackwood warned. “I heard about your stunt in demonology.”

“I did tell you I was capable of more,” Nick reasoned. Sabrina watched the exchange with interest. She knew what Blackwood would say if she were in Nick’s shoes, let alone talking back to him. “You said I had to prove it.”

“Conjuring a marquis of Hell and setting your professor’s desk on fire wasn’t what I had in mind,” Blackwood informed him.

“There weren’t clear guidelines for what you had in mind,” Nick shrugged. “And Father Pratt told me to ‘conjure a demon’ so he could see where my abilities were. There were no other parameters given. So, I conjured a demon. I didn’t break any rules. I did as I was asked.”

“Your choice of demons was a bit reckless, don’t you think?”

“The first time I conjured Amon, he burned down an entire classroom,” Nick informed the High Priest. “This time, it was just a desk.” Nick tilted his head a bit. “What do you say, Father Blackwood? Can I advance to the next level?”

“Fine,” Blackwood said after a beat. “I will allow it. But remember, Mr. Scratch, unauthorized magic is strictly prohibited at the Academy.”

“A useless rule,” Sabrina piped up. “You simply don’t want us to use our magic. And why does he get to move into a higher level class after just one conjuring of a demon? I’ve been all but begging to be allowed to test out of my intro classes...”

Blackwood looked at her as though just noticing she was there. He looked back to Nicholas.

“Another suggestion?” he asked. “Choose your company wisely, Nicholas. Some of the Academy’s students are more aligned with our church’s beliefs than others.”

With that, he turned on his heel and walked away. Sabrina glared after him.

“I hate him.”

“He does have a certain energy about him,” Nick agreed. He considered her. “I’m guessing you’re not aligned with this church’s beliefs.”

“I’m aligned with the parts that make sense,” Sabrina stated. Nick grinned at how confident she sounded. “The sexist, misogynistic parts? Not so much.” She stabbed the fruit salad on her plate with more vigor than was strictly necessary. Nick decided he had to know her better.

“What are you doing tonight, Spellman?” he asked. “I heard about this place called Dorian’s. Want to show me?”

Sabrina looked at him. Nick knew in his gut she was going to turn him down. Sure enough, she shook her head minutely.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“And why would that be?” Nick pressed.

“It’s just not a good idea.” She was only sixteen, but she knew herself well. The warlock next to her was undoubtedly handsome. But she had already seen enough to know he had a ‘devil may care’ attitude and that just wasn’t her, despite the rules she often pushed back on. “Besides, Dorian isn’t a big fan of me.”

“Why is that?” Nick asked.

“His club used to be warlocks only,” she explained. “I thought that was ridiculous, so I walked in, ordered a drink, and the rest of the witches followed.” Nick’s lips turned into a smile.

“You’re a rebel, Spellman,” he declared. “That’s how I like my witches.”

“And warlocks,” she said pointedly.

“What do the mortals say? Like is like?”

“It’s ‘love is love,’” she corrected. Nick shrugged.

“Not for a warlock.”

And that, Sabrina thought, was exactly why she wasn’t going to be going to Dorian’s with him. Perhaps it was the mortal in her, but she just didn’t agree with the free expression of sex than ran rampant amongst her classmates. She believed in something special.

Like her parents had.

“I should go,” she said. “I have spellcasting next and it’s on the other side of the school.”

“Did I run you off?” he asked. He was joking, but deep down, under the layer of smooth and sarcastic warlock, he thought it might, maybe, bother him that she was leaving – and turning him down. That didn’t happen often, the turning down part. The fact that he was bothered by it… Well, that never happened. He chalked it up to being at a new school on a new continent. “I only bite if you want me to, Spellman.”

“I’ll remain unbitten, thanks,” she said as she stood and collected her things, unfazed by his flirting. “Do try not to set any more desks on fire today?”

“I make no promises,” he retorted. “I’ve got binding next – and I’m even better at binding than conjuring demons.”

She didn’t bother with a retort. She just shook her head, rolled her eyes, and walked away. He watched her go, taking in the swing of her hips, the way her waist nipped in before rounding out again.

He wanted to know more about her.

And it wouldn't hurt if he learned a little more about her father’s work, too.

* * *

Nick walked into Dorian’s Room with curiosity. He paused in the doorway and took a look around. The place was dark and mysterious. The perfect place for causing debauchery without concern. A place where a warlock could do as they pleased and remain discreet. He nodded once in approval.

This was his kind of place.

He wandered up to the bar and slid onto a stool. An attractive bartender with blowing blonde hair and a vintage style sidled up to him.

“You’re the new warlock at the Academy.”

Nick frowned.

“How in the Heaven does news travel so fast here?” he wondered.

“Small coven,” the bartender shrugged. “But one doesn’t conjure a marquis of Hell in intermediate demonology and not make the gossip column. So to speak.”

“And you are?” Nick inquired.

“Dorian Gray,” the bartender answered. “The owner of this fine establishment. Anything you want, I can get.” He leaned forward in a conspiratory manner. “For a price, of course.”

“Of course,” Nick echoed. “How about we start with a glass of absinthe?”

“That’s a big boy drink,” Dorian observed.

“It’s also my drink of choice,” Nick challenged. “Pour, please.” Dorian chuckled and removed a bottle of the green liquid from under the counter.

“I think I’m going to like you…”

“Nicholas Scratch,” Nick supplied. “Nick Scratch.”

“Nicholas Scratch,” Dorian echoed as he poured the alcohol into an ornate glass. “Yes, I do think I’m going to like you.” He slid the glass across the counter. Nick caught it easily. Dorian watched him take a long sip. The strong liquor didn’t seem to faze him. “Big boy indeed.”

Nick turned on the stool so he could better survey the bar. He didn’t know any names, but he recognized some of the faces from his first day at the Academy.

“You seem like someone who would know all the gossip,” he said to Dorian. “What do I need to know about Greendale? The Academy?” He looked to Dorian. “Blackwood?”

“The mortals say Greendale always feels like Halloween,” Dorian shared. “The sign welcoming visitors to our town even says ‘let Greendale cast a spell on you.’ Which, if you think about it, isn’t wrong. Any one of us in this room will curse a soul without much thought.” Nick nodded his agreement. He wasn’t one to curse mortals for fun, but he knew plenty who were. “There’s a lot of old magic here, a lot of history. The Spellman family in particular hold a lot of that power and history.”

“I met Sabrina earlier,” Nick mentioned. “I’m familiar with her father’s work.”

“Ah, Sabrina,” Dorian said with a certain fondness. “Quite the witch, that one. Quite the handful, too, depending on who you ask. She has more power in her pinkie than most of those you see littering this room.”

“I did get the impression that she has a rebellious streak.”

“Steak? More like an airstrip,” Dorian quipped. “But I suppose it does run in the family. Her cousin Ambrose is a favorite of mine, but he’s been under house arrest for decades, now. Still a wonderful customer – I make his deliveries personally.” He smirked. “If you catch my drift.”

“House arrest?” Nick repeated, ignoring the innuendo. He was more curious about what Dorian would tell him about the Spellmans. “What did he do?”

“Tried to blow up the Vatican,” Dorian said with an airily wave of his hand. “The fool wouldn’t rat out his accomplices and so he’s bound to the Spellman mortuary. They are a loyal bunch, those Spellmans.”

“I know a bit about her father, Edward,” Nick hedged. “He was an interesting character.”

Edward Spellman was fascinating, in Nick’s opinion. He knew enough about himself by now to know that his conjuring and binding skills rivaled those of Edward’s. He knew, too, that Edward had studied those areas extensively, experimented, planned to bring his work to the wider magical community along with some of his more radical beliefs before his death. He wanted to get his hands on the man’s journals, see what he could learn from them.

“Interesting, controversial, a hero, a rabble rouser. You name it, he was called it. I liked him. He held a number of secretive meetings in my private rooms.”

“About what?” Nick pressed, hoping he sounded merely curious.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Edward made sure he was never overhead. As I said, the Spellmans hold a lot of the secrets and magics.”

“Is it just Sabrina and her cousin?” Nick asked.

“Oh, we can’t forget her aunts,” Dorian was quite content to continue gossiping. It was one of his favorite past times. “Hilda is a gem of a witch, but don’t let her kind exterior fool you. She is excommunicated from the coven.” Nick’s eyebrows shot up.

“Apparently rebellion runs in the veins of all the Spellmans,” he observed.

“There was quite the debacle with Sabrina’s Dark Baptism,” Dorian shared. “The details are vague. Only those of the highest positions of power were allowed at her hearing, necessary to keep it all hush hush you see, but it was a drawn out ordeal.” Nick’s curiosity about Sabrina Spellman skyrocketed. “And of course, you can’t forget Zelda. Frankly, Nicholas, if you are going to choose one person at the Academy not to piss off, I would recommend her. I’m near certain she has her own agenda, but no one knows what it is.”

“She happen to have red hair?” Nick asked, remembering the woman on the stairs that advised him to get to class earlier.

“That would be her,” Dorian confirmed. He considered Nick. “Why all the Spellman questions?”

“I asked you for intel on Greendale,” Nick reminded him. “You supplied the Spellman insights.”

“True,” Dorian shrugged, unconcerned. “Greendale holds a lot of secrets, Nicholas. Magical and not. What you do with what you find is up to you.” A warlock approached the bar from the other end. Dorian raised his glass to Nick, effectively ending their conversation before he ever got to the sordid subject of Faustus Blackwood. “Cheers.”

He drifted away, leaving Nick to drink his absinthe and think over what he had just learned about the Spellman family. He wanted to know more, wanted to learn who Edward was in particular, and what his plans had been before his untimely death.

“You’re the new guy in town,” came a smooth voice. The warlock from lunch appeared next to Nick. He leaned on the bar seductively.

“I’m Nicholas Scratch,” Nick countered. His body language immediately changed to a more flirty position. “And you are?”

“Adam,” the guy said with a sly grin. “How about I buy you another one of those?” He nodded at Nick’s drink. Nick looked at it, then back at Adam. His own grin was devilish.

“How about we skip that part?” Nick proposed. “I hear there are private rooms here.”

“Right this way,” Adam confirmed. He caught Nick by the hand as he passed him. Nick followed willingly.

This, he thought, was the best part about being a warlock. There were no rules, no expectations, no strings. Just a few hours of pleasure and good times to be had by all.

Exactly how it was meant to be.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, thank you, thank you for the warm welcome for this story! I'm so glad you all liked the twist on their choir room meet cute! I'm going to play with a few plot points - including one below - in that sort of manner. Shall we bring in the mortals?

“Brina!”

Sabrina had just enough time to register her best friend before Roz Walker was on her, enveloping her in a near suffocating hug.

“Hi!” she breathed when Roz finally pulled away. “It’s so good to see you!”

“Are you kidding?” Roz exclaimed. “It’s so good to see _you_!” She reached for another hug. “It’s been so long!”

“It’s only been a few weeks,” Sabrina said with a bit of a chuckle. Still, a pang of sadness pulled at her. She didn’t regret her choice to embrace her witch side and attend the Academy, but she greatly missed her friends, particularly Roz. As far as her mortal friends knew, she was attending a boarding school several hours away and came home on holidays and for the occasional long weekend.

“It’s been forever,” Roz insisted.

“Okay, okay,” came a voice. “You’re hogging her. It’s my turn.”

“Theo!” Sabrina launched herself at Theo Putnam and hugged him hard. Just before she ‘left’ for boarding school, he had announced his transition to ‘Theo’ and she couldn’t be prouder of her brave friend. “I missed you!”

“We missed you too, Brina,” he hugged her hard.

“How is school?” she asked as she pulled away. “Are people…”

“It’s fine,” Theo said with a smile that didn’t meet his eyes.

“Theo…” Sabrina warned.

“It’s fine,” he said again. “People are adjusting. It’s different. I’m different. It’s okay.” Sabrina said nothing, but she made a mental note to do some poking around herself. She would make sure Theo was left alone. Theo stepped aside, revealing a third figure waiting to greet her.

“Harvey,” she said, tentative but hopeful.

“Hey Brina,” Harvey Kinkle greeted in a similar tone. She took a cautious step forward. He held his arms out to her and she wrapped him in a hug. It wasn’t as long or as hard as the hugs from Roz and Theo, but it was more than she expected. “Welcome back.”

“It’s good to be back,” she said with a small, sad smile. It was so strange, to be with her friends, pretending like she had been far away when in reality, she had been at the mortuary all this time, or else in classes just a few miles from Baxter High. It was strange to be around Harvey and not _be_ with Harvey.

“Let’s sit down,” Theo proposed. He led the way to their usual booth at Dr. Cerberus. Cee appeared almost right away.

“The gang’s all together!” he declared. “Sabrina, welcome back!”

“Thank you, Cee,” she smiled. He was playing his part well. He had recently started dating her aunt and knew their secrets. She knew his, too. “It’s good to be home.”

“The usual?” he asked.

The foursome traded affirmative glances.

“Please,” Sabrina confirmed.

“Coming right up,” Cee filtered away.

“Tell me everything,” Sabrina requested. “I want to know what you all have been up to. Don’t leave out a single detail.”

Sabrina listened intently as her friends shared what they had been up to, what was happening with their classmates and at Baxter High. Roz was in the middle of a story about varsity cheerleading tryouts when the diner door opened. Sabrina glanced in the direction of it out of habit. Her eyes widened when she spotted Nicholas Scratch glide through it. He didn’t see her, however, and found a seat at the counter.

“So, wait, you made the varsity squad?” Sabrina asked, bringing her full attention back to Roz.

“I did!” Roz exclaimed. “I’ve got the uniform and everything!”

“Roz! That’s awesome!”

Harvey and Theo were sharing their plans to try out for the basketball team while they ate greasy burgers and heaps of fries when a straw wrapper zoomed through the air and hit Theo in the cheek. He tensed for a moment, then resumed eating. Sabrina, however, turned to find the source of the violation.

“Billy freaking Marlin,” she muttered.

“Leave it alone, Sabrina,” Theo muttered.

“But…”

“It’s best to ignore it,” Theo insisted.

Sabrina bit her tongue. She strongly disagreed.

“So, yeah, basketball…” Harvey tried to bring the conversation back around.

“Tryouts start Monday…” Theo picked up.

Another straw flew their way. Sabrina turned her full body to glare at Billy and his friends. They were laughing into their milkshakes. She narrowed her eyes.

“You think that’s funny, do you?” she asked them.

“What are you talking about?” Billy asked innocently. “We were just laughing at a joke…”

“Yeah, you see, a girl walks into a diner…,” one of his friends started.

“But she wants everyone to think she’s a boy…” Billy finished. “Can you guess who the joke is about?”

Sabrina was on the inside of the booth, but she manhandled Theo out of it despite his protests so she could get to Billy. She ignored her friends calling her back, noting that it was Roz and Harvey begging her to return to them. Theo’s voice wasn’t in the call. That only fueled her fire.

“You are a despicable human,” she informed Billy. She stood at the end of their table, hands on her hips and not remotely intimidated by the five teenage boys all much bigger than her petite frame. She could feel her power begging to get out. She pushed it down. She couldn’t reveal herself to the mortals all around her, all of whom were now watching the exchange with curiosity. “All of you are. Every last one of you at this table are sorry excuses of existence. Who do you think you are, making fun of someone because they are brave enough to be who they truly are?”

“It’s just not natural,” Billy tried. “She’s a girl…”

“ _Theo_ is a boy,” Sabrina informed them with no room for argument. “Frankly, he is more of a man than any of you at this table will ever be. It’s in your best interest to stop bullying him – and anyone else you may deem ‘unnatural’ – right this second.”

“Or you’ll do what?” Billy taunted. “Shake your pretty little finger at us?” He raised his milkshake to his lips. Sabrina narrowed her eyes.

Without warning, Billy’s skin erupted into a blistering rash. Sabrina’s eyes widened. It wasn’t her that caused the rash, but she wasn’t the only magical being in the diner right then.

“What…” Billy sputtered as his so called friends scrambled to put distance between themselves and Billy. “What’s going on…” he scratched at himself.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Sabrina warned. “Scratching will make it worse.”

She turned on her heel and walked away. Her eyes went to Nick. He appeared unbothered by the scene as he slowly ate his way through his own burger basket.

“You didn’t need to do that,” Theo said when Sabrina returned to their table. “I can take care of myself.”

“I know you can,” she said as she stood next to them. “But I’m your friend and I’m not going to stand for you being treated that way.” She looked at Roz and Harvey. “You’re not letting Theo get treated like this at school, are you?” she half asked, half demanded.

“No,” they both said quickly.

“We’ve got Theo’s back,” Harvey assured her.

“Always,” Roz added.

“I can take care of myself,” Theo said again. “Really, Sabrina. I know what I’m doing.”

Sabrina didn’t buy it, but she didn’t press it. She took a big breath and glanced back at the counter.

“I’m going to go to the counter and order our usual milkshakes,” she said as Billy and his friends filed past their table on their way out, Billy still itching. “I think we deserve them.”

She didn’t want for them to agree. She idled up to the bar and leaned on it under the pretense of waiting to catch Cee’s attention. She glanced at Nick.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“That guy was being an asshole.” He dragged a fry through ketchup. “He deserved it.”

“He did,” Sabrina agreed. “But cursing him once isn’t going to stop him from continuing to bullying Theo.”

“Actually, it will,” Nick said. “Anytime he tries to bully someone, Theo or otherwise, he will have a nice little reappearance of that rash.”

“You put a long-term hex on him,” Sabrina realized.

“All in a day’s work,” Nick shrugged as though it were no big deal. It was simple magic, really. “The guy had it coming.”

“Sabrina.”

Cee appeared before her with a raised eyebrow.

“Can we get our usual milkshakes?” she asked. Cee slowly nodded, eyes on her.

“Did I see Billy and his group of friends leave rather suddenly?”

Sabrina knew what he was implying.

“It wasn’t me,” she told Cee. She tilted her head towards Nick. “It was Nick.” Nick snapped his head to her. She was outing him. To a mortal. His mind started racing as he thought of the right spell to get him out of being caught. “He intervened before I could do anything.”

“Sabrina…” Nick hissed. “Stop…”

“It’s okay,” Sabrina assured him. “Cee is one of us.”

“He’s a….,” Cee trailed off and jerked his thumb towards Nick.

“Yes,” Sabrina confirmed. “He just joined the Academy.”

“Ah.” The man before him relaxed. Nick’s confusion grew. He could sense a witch or a warlock’s magic. They all could. This man – dressed as a vampire at that – wasn’t one. But, he realized once he was paying attention, he wasn’t mortal either. “Good on you then,” he approved. “Sabrina, I’ll have those milkshakes out shortly.”

The vampire drifted away. Sabrina made to return to her friends, but Nick caught her by the elbow.

“Explain,” he stated.

“Explain what?” she countered.

“Who is that guy?” he asked. “The wannabe vampire? More importantly, what is he?”

“His name is Cee and he’s the owner,” she told him. Her eyes darted to her friends. They were watching her conversation with the stranger at the bar curiously. “He dates my aunt Hilda. As for what he is, he’s an incubus.” She smirked a bit. “I thought you were a demonology expert.”

“You know as well as I do how well they can hide in plain sight,” he stated. “I thought you were outing me to a witch hunter or something.”

“Why would I do that?” Sabrina wondered. “You haven’t done anything to deserve that.” She smirked. “Yet.”

He watched her walk away with a smirk of his own.

“Who is that guy?” Theo asked as she joined them once more. “The one at the counter?”

“He’s just passing through,” Sabrina said, assuming that was true. It wasn’t typical for the witches and warlocks from the Academy to venture into town. “He asked for directions to the highway.”

Her friends took that lie – one of many she told them – at face value and picked up their conversation right where Billy had interrupted it. They drank their milkshakes and parted ways outside of Cee’s, Sabrina to the left where the sidewalk would turn into the road that would take her to the mortuary, the rest of them to the right towards their respective homes. Sabrina was nearly at the corner when she heard her name.

“Spellman.”

Nick was there, perched on a bench, his ankle resting on his knee as he leaned against its back.

“Nick,” she replied in surprise. He closed the paperback he was reading, but not before she glimpsed the title. “What are you doing here?”

“I figured I’d wait for you and we can head back to the Academy together.” He gave his most charming smile. “Or we can go elsewhere...”

“I hate to break it to you, Scratch, but I’m not going to the Academy,” she informed him. “I don’t live there.”

“You don’t?” Nick questioned. “How did you swing that?” He wouldn’t mind not living there himself.

“The Spellmans live at the mortuary on the edge of town,” she explained. “I didn’t feel the need to live at the Academy when my aunts and cousin are so close. When it was time for my Dark Baptism, I negotiated to remain at home.”

“You negotiated?” Nick repeated.

“I had a difference of opinion on a few matters that come along with signing the Book of the Beast,” she told him in an allusive way. “It was on my terms or not at all.”

Nick looked at her with something akin to wonder. He had never heard of a witch or warlock refusing to sign the Book of the Beast until their terms were met. If they had resisted, they either gave in with little fight or else ceased to exist.

“You really are a rebel, Spellman.”

“So are you, it seems,” she countered. “Hanging out at Dr. Cerberus? I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of the students from the Academy there.”

“I was bored,” Nick shrugged. “I decided to go exploring. I saw the diner, figured it couldn’t be worse than whatever the Academy was serving. Turns out the burgers are pretty good.”

“You should have had a milkshake,” she told him.

“Next time,” he grinned, his words full of suggestion. Sabrina just shook her head, but he noted the small grin on her lips. “Come on, Spellman. I’ll walk you home.”

Sabrina raised her eyebrow, already questioning his motive.

“I’ll be fine. I walk home alone all the time.”

Nick shook his head.

“I’m walking you home,” he insisted. “A pretty girl like you shouldn’t walk home alone.”

“Fine,” Sabrina said after a beat because she sensed she wasn’t going to get out of it. She started walking and Nick fell in step beside her. He was more than a little curious to get a glimpse of the Spellman mortuary and, he reasoned, walking Sabrina home was what he thought the mortals would call the chivalrous thing to do. “Thank you, by the way. For what you did earlier.”

“Like I said, that guy was being an asshole,” he said as though cursing Billy was no big deal. “I don’t make it a habit of cursing mortals, but that one had it coming.”

“He’s the worst,” Sabrina vented. “He’s such a jerk. All the time.”

“You could have handled him,” Nick told her. “But I got the feeling you weren’t going to do much more than, as he put it, shake your finger at him.”

“We can’t go around cursing mortals,” she reminded him.

“That mortal deserved to be cursed.”

“I’m not trying to blow our cover, Scratch. I would have handled it another way.” She still planned to ensure Theo didn’t endure any more bullying from Billy or otherwise. She glimpsed at the paperback in his hand. “Speaking of covers. _Frankenstein_?”

“What?” Sabrina nodded at the book in his hand. “Oh. Yeah. I bought it back at that diner. It looked interesting.”

“It’s one of my favorites,” she offered.

“Really?” Nick asked. “You’re a fan of horror novels?”

“They’re my favorite genre,” she admitted. “Classic horror movies, too.”

“You’re a rebel and a little strange,” Nick observed. Sabrina laughed a bit.

“I’m a bit surprised to see you reading one,” she confessed. “Warlocks at the Academy aren’t known for sitting around reading books for fun.”

“I like books,” Nick shrugged. “Always have.”

“Where are you from anyway?” Sabrina wondered. They had passed through the town by now and were on the more desolate road that would lead them to the mortuary.

“Most recently?” Nick countered. “Andorra.”

“But where are you from?” Sabrina pushed. “I assume you went to school in Andorra, but is that where you’re from?”

“Czechia,” he answered after a beat. He sounded reluctant to volunteer the information. “Or rather, the Czech Republic. My family’s coven is from Kutná Hora.”

“So how did you end up here?” she asked. She was curious about him. She sensed he had a story and she wondered what he would tell her.

“I went to school in Kutná Hora,” he told her, again hesitating. “Then Wales, then it was on to Andorra. Now I’m here.”

“Are you going to tell me why you went to so many schools?” Sabrina wondered. “What about your parents? Family?”

Nick didn’t answer right away. Sabrina sensed the way he withdrew, if only minutely. She opened her mouth to change the subject, but Nick spoke first.

“They’re dead,” he said in a lower voice. “I don’t have any other living relatives. That makes me a ward of the high council. Depending on who you ask, I acted out after my parents died, got sent off to Wales, did the same thing, got sent to Andorra, rinse and repeat. Now I’m here. Same story, different school.”

“I’m sorry,” Sabrina offered. “I shouldn’t have intruded.” She gave him a guilty half smile. “I do that sometimes. Or a lot. Put my nose where it doesn’t belong, I mean.”

“It’s fine,” Nick shook his head. “It is what it is. No use in denying it, I guess.” It was more than he usually shared about himself, but something about the witch next to him got him to talk. At least a little bit.

“When do you turn eighteen?” she wondered.

“Three months, two weeks, three days, and about,” he checked his watch, “three hours and five minutes.”

“Not that you’re counting down,” Sabrina mused.

“Would you want Faustus Blackwood as your guardian?” Nick countered.

“I can think of very few things I would want less,” Sabrina agreed. “What happens when you turn eighteen? I didn’t know that age was a thing for witches. I thought sixteen was the only age that really mattered.”

“You matriculate out of the Academy when you turn eighteen,” Nick explained. “It’s one of the few ways we’re like mortals, I guess. The moment I turn that magic number, I’ll no longer be required to turn up to classes and listen to subpar instruction.”

“The Academy teachers aren’t so bad,” Sabrina defended. “At least, most of them aren’t. I’ve learned a lot from them.” In her opinion, the Academy’s faculty was, overall, pretty decent. Most of them did their best to make up for all things Blackwood in their own ways and many had been loyal to her father during his time as High Priest. The few that aligned themselves with Blackwood were easy to avoid – or overthrow, as it were.

“I’m sure they are fine for general knowledge,” Nick amended. “But I’m beyond that. I could teach a few of them something.”

Sabrina studied him.

“You are really confident in your abilities,” she stated after a few beats. “Cocky, actually.”

“I’ve got a lot of power and I know how to use it,” Nick defended himself. He had no shame in leaning into his Satan-giving abilities. He was given the amount of power he contained for a reason. “I don’t see what’s wrong with that.”

“Nothing is wrong with it, per se,” Sabrina argued. “But your attitude about it is – unattractive.”

Nick raised an eyebrow.

“Unattractive?” he repeated. “Might be the first time anyone has ever used that word to describe me.” Sabrina rolled her eyes.

“You’re cocky,” she said again. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about.” She cut her eye at him and decided to just say what was on her mind. “Generally speaking, people who come across as overly confident are trying to make up for something – or hide something.”

Nick looked uncomfortable, but he quickly covered it up with a smooth smile.

“Psychoanalyzing me, Spellman?”

“Just calling things like I see them.”

Nick decided it was time to change the topic before she got too close to the truth. She had already chipped away at it.

“So you hang out with mortals?” he asked. “Talk about something witches don’t do.”

“I’m half mortal,” she reminded him. “I went to mortal school before I signed the Book of the Beast. Those people I was with are my best friends.”

“They don’t ask questions about where you disappear to?” Nick wondered.

“They think I go to a boarding school a few hours away,” she admitted. “As far as they’re concerned, I’m home to visit for a long weekend.”

Nick felt her sense of melancholy.

“It’s a risk, being friends with mortals,” he ventured.

“I know,” Sabrina nodded. “They grow older, we don’t. Someday, they pass away…” Nick frowned and shook his head.

“That’s not what I was talking about. I meant them finding out about us.”

“Would that be so bad?” Sabrina wondered. “Living in harmony with the mortals? Using our magic to help them?”

“That’s what your dad wanted,” Nick pointed out.

“He did,” Sabrina nodded. “I think I might want that too.”

Nick said nothing. He didn’t disagree, exactly, but it was a complicated puzzle. There were infinitely many more mortals than witches, for one, and most of their kind would balk at the idea of living amongst the mortals openly. Most covens were self-contained, didn’t interact with the locals at all. Some of them were even afraid of mortals. But there was an allure to being able to openly do his magic, to show mortals that things could be so much easier for them if they would only open their eyes to a little magic. There was something else he was curious about, however.

“How long have you been friends with the mortals?” he asked.

“Since kindergarten,” Sabrina shrugged. “Except for Roz. I’ve known her even longer.” She smirked a bit. “Her father is a pastor. He comes to the mortuary to preside over funerals. Roz would come with him when we were small and we would play upstairs in my room out of the way. We’ve been friends since we were toddlers.”

“A pastor in a witch house,” Nick understood her smirk. “There’s something you don’t see every day.”

The mortuary came into view. Nick’s intrigue heightened. The old Victorian looked like it belonged in a horror novel or movie itself. As they passed the yellow ‘Spellman Mortuary’ sign, he wondered at the novelty of it all, the way the Spellmans lived seemingly undetected amongst the mortals, even welcomed them into their home. That wasn’t something he had ever known a witch or warlock to do – at least not with pure intentions.

“Thanks for walking me home,” she said at the gate. Nick realized then he wasn’t going to be invited in. “Even though it was entirely unnecessary.”

“Did you see those dark, foggy roads?” Nick countered. He had certainly noticed how alone they were. He hadn’t mentioned it to Sabrina, but he could feel – something. It was a bit like being watched or like there was something hiding just out of sight, awaiting just the right moment to reveal itself. It had heightened his senses as they walked. He wasn’t a chivalrous guy all things considered, but he was glad he had walked Sabrina home all the same. “That’s not the kind of place a pretty witch like you should be alone.”

Sabrina rolled her eyes at the perceived pickup line, noted it was the second time he had called her pretty within the half hour.

“I do it all the time,” she told him again. “But what about you, Scratch? You’re new around here. Do you know your way back to the Academy, or do I need to return the favor and walk you home?”

“As much as I think I’d enjoy your company, I can teleport back to the Academy just fine,” he told her. Sabrina frowned.

“You can teleport? We’re not supposed to do that… Not until we’re eighteen and have been taught…” It was another one of the few age limits she knew of in the witching world.

It was Nick’s turn to roll his eyes.

“For someone who negotiated with Blackwood and the Dark Lord before signing away their name, you sure do follow a lot of rules.” Sabrina’s eyes narrowed.

“I follow the ones that make sense,” she informed him. “Teleportation is dangerous. If done incorrectly you could end up in the wrong place, leave parts of your body behind…”

“Good thing I know what I’m doing then, isn’t it?” Nick asked. He grinned at her annoyed expression. “I’ll see you at school on Monday, Spellman.”

With a quiet pop, he was gone. Sabrina gasped in surprise as she took in the empty space Nick had just occupied. She begrudgingly had to admit it – he was good.

She was nearly at the porch stairs when another voice spoke.

“Who was _that_?”

Her cousin Ambrose was perched on the railing. Even in the dark, she could see his eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“That was Nicholas Scratch,” she said as she climbed the stairs. “He’s a new warlock at the Academy.”

“And a new love interest for you, perhaps?” Ambrose insinuated.

“Hardly,” Sabrina scoffed. “He’s arrogant and the definition of a bad boy.”

“Just my type,” Ambrose quipped. “New warlock, you say?”

“He showed up a few days ago,” Sabrina confirmed. She leaned against the railing to chat with Ambrose before she went inside for the night. “From what I’ve heard, he’s caused a bit of trouble everywhere he’s been.”

“Wait, you said he’s a student?” Ambrose asked. Sabrina nodded. “But he just teleported away… And I didn’t hear him use a spell.”

“He didn’t use a spell,” Sabrina realized. “He just – did it.”

“Unholy shit,” Ambrose said awe. “He shouldn’t be able to do that. Not yet. And nonverbal spells? Heaven, very few witches and warlocks even try that, let alone succeed.” He looked intrigued. “Invite him over. I want to get to know him.”

“I’m not inviting him over,” Sabrina stated. “He’s not someone I imagine myself being friends with.”

“Do it for me,” Ambrose practically begged. “He’s pretty and I get no social interaction.”

“Whose fault is that?” Sabrina countered.

“Touché,” Ambrose agreed. He didn’t like his house arrest sentence, but he owned it all the same. His actions had gotten him there, after all. “Help me out, cousin!”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “End of discussion.”

“You’re no fun,” Ambrose pouted. “Will you at least tell me why the handsome warlock walked you home?”

“Because he wouldn’t take no for an answer,” Sabrina said frankly. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment, thinking. “He cursed Billy Marlin,” she said as she truly started to process that fact. “Billy was making fun of Theo and I went over to his table to put him in his place. He broke out in a rash while I was mid-sentence. Nick was at the counter eating. He did it. He said Billy was being an asshole – which was true.” She looked to Ambrose. “Warlocks don’t typically do that either, do they?” she wanted to know. “Intervene on behalf of a mortal, especially one they don’t know?”

“They do not,” Ambrose confirmed. “If anything, they get in on the antagonizing.”

“He was reading on a bench when I left Cee’s,” Sabrina continued. “He said he was waiting so we could go back to the Academy together. But when I told him I lived here, he decided he was going to walk me home.”

“Curious,” Ambrose said. “All of it.”

“He was just trying to get into my pants,” Sabrina said bluntly. “He’s made more than a few suggestions.”

“I’d be all over that if I were you,” Ambrose told her. “I could tell how damned attractive he is from here, in the dark. Add all that power….” Ambrose shook his head. He would bed the warlock in a heartbeat.

“You know that’s not who I am,” she told him.

“Unfortunately for you,” Ambrose agreed. “Did you at least have fun with your friends?”

“It was so good to see them,” Sabrina confirmed. “They’re coming over tomorrow night for a movie night and a sleepover, so behave yourself, okay?”

“I always do,” Ambrose drawled. Sabrina gave him a look that said otherwise. He chuckled. “I’ll be on my best behavior, do my best impression of a mortal.”

“Can you try to dress like one for a change?” she requested, referring to Ambrose’s eclectic style.

“Don’t push your luck,” he warned. Sabrina laughed a bit and pushed off the railing.

“Goodnight, Ambrose.”

“G’night, cousin,” he replied.

Her aunts were nowhere to be found as she made her way upstairs to her room. She dropped her bag in her vanity chair and pulled her headband out of her hair. Her familiar, Salem, meowed at her from her bed.

“Hello to you too,” she said as she crossed the room to pat him. He pawed at a piece of paper that had appeared on her bed. She frowned and picked it up.

_Just thought I’d tell you me and all my body parts made it back to the Academy._

Sabrina laughed a bit.

She planned to keep Nicholas Scratch at a very safe distance.

But she could still appreciate his magic from afar.

* * *

“Let’s play monopoly.”

“No one wants to play monopoly, Harvey,” Theo informed him. “What about Scrabble?”

“Talk about a game no one wants to play,” Harvey retorted. “All that spelling…”

“Fine, what about Clue?” Sabrina suggested.

“I could get into Clue,” Roz agreed.

“I hate Clue,” Harvey grumbled.

“Just because you always lose,” Theo said.

”So, Clue then?” Sabrina pulled the board game off the shelf. She took in the scene for a moment. It was a perfect moment, as far as she was concerned. Her best friends, all the junk food they could want, one empty pizza box, another with just two slices left, movies stacked and waiting to be watched. It was everything she wanted from the evening.

“Who goes first?” Roz asked.

“Harvey,” Theo piped up. “He’s going to lose anyway, may as well let him go first to ease some of the pain.” Harvey elbowed Theo who chuckled. Roz laughed lightly and Sabrina rolled her eyes fondly. They had settled into their game and each taken a few turns when a knock sounded at the door.

“I’ve got it!” Ambrose called through the house. His footsteps could be heard thundering down the stairs. Sabrina had just a moment to realize what was happening before she heard him reach the door.

“Oh my Satan,” she hissed under her breath.

“Ambrose, darling,” came a voice she didn’t want to hear. “So good to see you.”

“Who’s that?” Theo wondered.

“Satan herself,” Sabrina stated.

“Herself?” Roz questioned.

“You’ll see.”

Several sets of footsteps made their way towards the parlor where Sabrina and her friends were camped out. Ambrose appeared first and leaned against the doorway with a self-satisfied smirk Sabrina wanted to wipe off his face. Prudence appeared next, all tall and leather and lace clad. The smirk she wore was downright evil as far as Sabrina was concerned. Her sisters were with her, as were a couple of warlocks she recognized from the Academy.

And Nick.

“Sabrina,” Prudence drawled. “So good to see you.”

“Wish I could say the same,” Sabrina chirped. She had just seen the girl at the Academy the day before and was looking forward to a few days without her and her sisters.

“Now is that any way to treat a guest?” Ambrose questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“You’re interrupting our game,” Sabrina replied. She noted Nick, how he leaned against the wall just inside the door and took it all in with an observative stance.

“As much fun as your little Girl Scout campout looks, we’re going to go up to Ambrose’s attic where we can have some real fun,” Prudence told the group. “You are, of course, welcomed to join us.”

“No thanks,” Sabrina spat.

“Suit yourself,” Prudence said in her singsong voice. She grabbed Ambrose by the collar. “Come, Ambrose.”

The group filed out. Nick caught her eye and smirked before he, too, disappeared. Sabrina shook her head in annoyance.

“Who are they?” Harvey asked.

“Friends of Ambrose’s,” Sabrina said. “And definitely not friends of mine.”

“Does Ambrose ever leave this house?” Theo wondered as he took his turn to resume the game. “I don’t think I’ve ever been here without him lurking about.”

“Lurking is an appropriate description for what he does,” Sabrina said. “He doesn’t have much of a social life so yeah, he’s always here.”

“But for someone who doesn’t have a social life, he sure did have quite the large group of friends,” Roz observed.

“I wouldn’t call them friends,” Sabrina hedged, well aware of what was going to happen in Ambrose’s attic at some point that night. It was a regular brothel in her opinion. But she needed to stop this line of questioning before she had to weave yet another lie to explain why her older cousin was housebound. “Harvey? Your turn.”

They continued to play until Roz won, guessing correctly that it was Professor Plum in the ballroom with the dagger. Theo suggested charades and they were off, the game getting louder and wilder as they went.

“Peacock!” Harvey called out as Roz strutted around the room and mimicked fanning a tail with her hands.

“Yes!” she cried out, pointing to him enthusiastically. “Your turn!”

Harvey got to his feet and chose a slip of paper from the now empty popcorn bowl. He read it quickly and put it down on the table. He began to flap his arms.

“Bird!” Theo called out.

Harvey shook his head and flapped his arms more wildly.

“Airplane?” Sabrina wondered.

“Airplane?” Roz asked with a raised eyebrow. Sabrina shrugged. She would never say it, but games in general weren’t Harvey’s strong suite. Harvey shook his head and started to spin in a circle as he flapped his arms.

“How is he so bad at this?” Theo wondered. Harvey scoffed and spun still faster.

“Harvey, you’re going to fall,” Sabrina said as he stumbled a few steps.

“Pinwheel!” Theo guessed.

Harvey shook his head again and huffed at his friends’ inability to guess what he was so clearly acting out. He changed tactics, swinging his arms around him as he once again began to spin faster and faster.

“Oh!” Roz cried out. “I got it! Helicopter!”

“Yes!” Harvey exclaimed. He stopped spinning, but he was unsteady on his feet. He stumbled several more feet sideways towards the built-in bookshelves.

“Careful!” Sabrina cried out.

“Just a little dizzy,” he said. He shook his head as though to clear it. It only made him more off kilter. He started to fall sideways. Sabrina saw what was going to happen before it happened.

“Harvey, no!”

She stood to do something – anything – but before she could, Harvey caught himself on the shelf and sent a very specific vase flying. She could only watch helplessly as it crashed to the ground and shattered.

Glass wasn’t the only thing that flew out of it.

She felt the chilling breeze as it blew past her.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry, Sabrina,” Harvey apologized. “I’m so so sorry. I’ll replace it…Was it an antique? A family heirloom? Please tell me it wasn’t...”

“Don’t worry about it,” Sabrina said as she looked over her shoulder in the direction the breeze had gone. “I’m going to go get a broom…”

“No, I’ll get it,” Harvey said. “Just tell me where…”

“No no,” Sabrina said quickly. “It was just an accident. You guys stay here. Right here. I’ll be right back…”

She rushed from the room, overhearing Roz ask the group if they had felt an odd draft of cold air too. She stopped just outside the door and whispered a quick protection spell as Theo denied feeling anything while Harvey said he thought he, too, had felt a breeze.

“Shit, shit, shit,” she breathed, thinking fast as Theo chalked up the breeze to the house being old and drafty. Her aunts weren’t home. Hilda was with Cee and she didn’t know where Zelda was, just that she wasn’t at the mortuary. Their absence was either a blessing or a curse, she wasn’t sure. “Crap.”

For a moment, she thought about handling the situation herself. She would never hear the end of it if she had to get Ambrose involved. She had taken care of things herself the first time, but it had taken her hours and she didn’t have hours. Not tonight, with her mortal friends in the house.

The idea hit her all at once.

She hurried up the first flight of stairs, then up a smaller, narrower set to Ambrose’s attic. She heard the music pounding but didn’t bother knocking. She threw up the door, not considering what she might find on the other side.

“Oh my Satan!”

She covered her eyes as the knot of bodies she walked in on untangled themselves and the music fell in volume.

“Stop being such a prude, Sabrina,” came Prudence’s voice. “We’re all still clothed. Mostly.”

Slowly, Sabrina let her hand fall away. The warlocks, including her cousin, were down to nothing but boxers while the witches had on lingerie that left little to imagination. ‘Clothed’ was a sweeping generalization.

“Care to join us?” Prudence continued. “Nicky here is hornier than a toad. I’m sure he’d love your company.”

“Or we could go somewhere alone,” Nick piped up, sitting up on his knees. Sabrina thought he looked hopeful. She tried to ignore how chiseled his chest was.

“I actually did come to see Nicholas,” she said. “Nick, can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Absolutely,” he smirked as he got to his feet. Sabrina glared at him, well aware of what his thoughts were.

“Put on your clothes,” she spat. She stomped out of the attic and hoped he followed. It was under a minute before he appeared, still buttoning up his shirt.

“Why the urgency, Spellman?” he asked. “Better question, why the clothes?”

“Can you turn off your hormones for one damned minute?” she demanded. “I need your help.”

“With that attitude?” Nick wondered. “I don’t know…”

“Nick, please.”

Something about her tone made him soften. She really did sound borderline desperate.

“What is it?” he asked.

She took a deep breath.

“There’s a sleep demon loose in the house.” Nick frowned. He wasn’t expecting that. “Batibat.”

“Batibat as in dream manipulation Batibat?”

“That’s the one,” Sabrina confirmed.

“And how, exactly, is Batibat loose in this house?” Nick questioned. “You and the mortals playing with a Ouija board?”

Sabrina scoffed at the idea.

“Batibat tormented my father for a number of years. He finally managed to trap her in an acheron. I managed to solve said acheron several months ago but set her loose in the process. Long story short, she was captured and sealed in a vase. My friends and I were playing charades, the vase got knocked over, it broke, Batibat is now roaming the house.”

“It was the tall dorky looking one, wasn’t it?” Nick asked. There was something about that guy he just didn’t like, even though he had never so much as made eye contact with him.

“Does it really matter?” Sabrina asked.

“That’s a yes then,” Nick decided. “Next question. Why was the vase containing a powerful sleep demon on display for all to see?”

“Hiding in plain sight? I don’t know, Nick, Zelda put it there!” Sabrina’s annoyance at him grew rapidly. “The fact of the matter is that Batibat is somewhere in this house and I need your help stopping her before she puts us all in a deep sleep and uses our worst fears against us.”

Nick grinned.

“You want my help?”

Sabrina looked at him for a moment. He stood there all messy hair and wrinkled clothes and cocky smirks and she lost her patience.

“You know what? Never mind. Go back to your orgy with my cousin. I’ll take care of it myself. I did it the first time, I’ll do it again.” She turned on her heel to march away. Nick was quick to catch her by the hand.

“I’ll help you.” She looked at him as though debating on whether to trust him. “What’s the plan?”

“I don’t have one,” she admitted after a beat, deciding maybe she did want his help after all. She realized he still had her hand. She pulled it away. “It took me hours to contain her last time. She tormented my family. I’ve got my friends here…”

“Okay,” Nick nodded once as a plan formed in his mind. “Your job is to keep the mortals busy. And contained. Don’t let them leave the parlor. Leave Batibat to me.”

“But…”

“I just need a jar,” he cut her off. “I assume I can find one in the kitchen?”

“Well, yeah, but Nick, I can’t let you…”

“Batibat is nothing I can’t handle,” he assured her. “Just keep your friends in the parlor.”

“Fine,” Sabrina agreed begrudgingly. “But if you need any help…”

“You’re the witch for the job,” he nodded.

At the bottom of the stairs, they parted ways with Nick promising Sabrina one more time that he had things under control. She thought to snag a broom before she returned to the parlor.

Keeping her friends occupied proved harder than expected. They wanted to help clean up, Roz needed a bathroom break, Theo wanted water, Harvey more snacks. Sabrina had no choice but to let Roz use the restroom and hope for the best, but she was the one that got the water and snacks. She convinced her friends to watch a movie, but she herself couldn’t focus on it, too worried about Batibat’s whereabouts, debating on whether she continued to sit on her hands or go and help Nick whether he wanted her help or not. They were well into the movie before Nick finally appeared in the doorway.

“Sabrina?” he asked. “Ambrose sent me downstairs to get snacks, but I don’t know my way around your kitchen. Mind helping me?”

“Sure,” she practically sprung to her feet. She didn’t see the weird look Harvey shot her, but Nick did. He purposefully put his hand on her back as she passed him and guided her into the hallway where she spun to face him. “Well?”

Nick picked up a quart jar from a side table.

“Batibat has been found and bound.”

“Thank Satan,” Sabrina sighed. “Nick, thank you. Thank you so much.”

“She put up a fair fight, but it was easy enough in the end,” Nick brushed off her gratitude. To him, capturing Batitbat was an adventure, all in a day’s work.

“I’ll put the jar somewhere safe,” she promised.

“Or,” Nick ventured with a hint of mischief, “we could get rid of her properly.”

“How would we do that?” Sabrina wondered.

“We banish her,” Nick said in an obvious sort of way. “Send her back where she came from.”

“We let her out of that jar and she’ll be free to cause chaos,” Sabrina reminded him. “I’ll put the jar in my room or maybe bury it in the yard…”

“Don’t you want to try some more advanced magic?” Nick tempted her. “Something Blackwood might teach an advanced warlock like myself at the Academy, not that he needs to, because I already know how to do it, but would never teach a witch, simply because she’s a witch?”

He had her and he knew it by the way she pursed her lips.

“It’s not possible,” she said anyway. “If it were, I assume my dad would have done it.”

“Seriously? Your father was one of the best binders in warlock history. My guess is Edward Spellman captured her in an acheron because it would be more torturous for her to be trapped there than sent back to her rightful home. Punishment for how long she tortured him.”

Sabrina couldn’t fault that logic. He was right. Her father could have banished Batibat with ease once he captured her, but entrapment in the acheron was a crueler sentence.

“What do you say, Spellman?” he continued. “Want to banish Batibat with me?”

“I can’t right now,” she hedged. “My friends…”

“Tomorrow night then,” Nick decided. “It’s a full moon anyway, so we’ll be able to draw on that for even more power. I’ll leave the spell with you – study it between now and then.”

“You sure you know what you’re doing?” she asked with some apprehension.

“Trust me, Spellman.” He winked at her. “Go back to your movie.”

“Go back to your orgy,” she quipped.

“I think I’m actually going to head out,” he said. For some reason, the sex party raging upstairs no longer appealed to him. That was an interesting turn of events, but he also didn’t bother to question it. “Binding demons really took it out of me.”

He said nothing further but gave her one his signature winks and headed for the door. She couldn’t stop herself from following him.

“Thank you,” she said again when they were on the porch. “Seriously, Nick. If I had to take care of it alone…”

“You could have handled it,” he said with confidence. “You just doubt your magic.” He considered her. “Or perhaps you simply haven’t tried to find out what you’re capable of.” He smiled at her as she digested his words. “I’ll pick you up here, tomorrow night. Ten o’clock. Don’t be late.”

“Does it have to be so late?” she wondered.

“No,” Nick answered honestly. “But I like the moonlight.”

With that, he was gone, once more vanished into thin air.

Sabrina closed the door and leaned against it for a moment. Nicholas Scratch continued to surprise her and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She was impressed by his magic, sure there was something more to him, and determined to keep him at a safe distance. But in just the week he had been in Greendale, he had showed himself quite capable of inserting himself into her life, regardless of what she wanted.

“Wasn’t that that guy from Cee’s?” Harvey asked when Sabrina reappeared in the living room.

“Yeah!” Theo added. “That’s it! I thought he looked familiar.”

“Turns out he’s a friend of Ambrose’s friend Prudence,” Sabrina easily lied. “Guess he decided to stick around.”

“Did he leave?” Roz questioned. “I thought he was on a snack run.”

“I guess he had enough of Prudence and her friends,” she said. “I know I certainly have.” She settled back on the couch between Roz and Theo. “Let’s finish the movie and maybe roll out our sleeping bags and start another one?”

That was the rule. Hilda and Zelda allowed Theo and Harvey to spend the night if they all slept in separate sleeping bags in a common area. She had never really questioned why as that seemed like a perfectly acceptable rule for a teenage girl, but as she learned more about what it meant to be a witch – and considered what Ambrose was doing two floors above them – she thought that rule might just be a bit dated now. Still, she wasn’t going to break it. Tonight, at least.

Her friends muttered their agreement and they all got comfortable once more.

Instead of focusing on the movie however, all she could think about was the jar that still sat on the entryway table.

And the warlock that trapped the demon inside of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little more insight into how Sabrina is living her life - she went with the boarding school story and is pretty good at lying to her friends. And Nick gave a little more background on himself as well. Not much, but something. But really, Harvey, how clumsy. There may well be a couple or three easter eggs in this one too about plot points to come... ;) 
> 
> Next update, they have a little banishment adventure, and I believe we'll end up at Dorian's once more... 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Let me know what you thought of this one!


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm truly blown away by the love for this story so far - thank you all so so much! Shall we banish demons and, well, Nick...

At ten o’clock on the nose, Sabrina slipped out of the mortuary as quiet as a mouse. She had told Salem where she was going, just in case, but she hadn’t breathed a word to her aunts or Ambrose. She had gone as far as repairing the broken vase with magic and putting it back on the shelf once her friends were asleep the night before, deciding her family would be none the wiser about its lack of a demon that way. It wasn’t like any of them opened it to check if Batibat was still inside.

A dark figure waited just by the gate.

“You got the jar, Spellman?” he asked when she was close enough for him to speak without having to raise his voice.

“It’s in my bag,” she promised. “I memorized your spell, too.”

“Perfect.” He pushed off the fence post he was leaning against. “Let’s go. I found the perfect spot.” He started to walk down the road. He had only taken a few steps before he realized Sabrina wasn’t following him. “Spellman?”

“How do I know you’re not setting me up?”

“Why would I set you up, Spellman?” he countered.

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “You are friends with Prudence though and she hates me, so…” Nick snorted.

“I’m not friends with Prudence,” he shook his head. “She has been mutually beneficial, of course, but that’s about it.” Sabrina made a face. “I’m not setting you up or leading you into a trap or anything else your brain might have come up with. I saw a chance to do some cool magic, magic that happens to help rid your family of a pesky demon, and that’s it. Promise.”

“Fine,” Sabrina decided to trust him. “Lead the way.”

“You have no faith in me, Spellman,” he commented as he resumed walking, this time with Sabrina at his side. “I have heard a lot of ‘I don’t trust you’ come out of you and I have known you what? A week?”

“You are the one with the mysterious past and Devil-may-care attitude,” she reminded him. “Tell me I’m wrong not to be a little leery.”

“Perhaps you’re not wrong,” Nick admitted. “But I wouldn’t put you in danger, Spellman.”

Sabrina found she believed him. There was an honesty to his words that she didn’t think came easily to Nick.

“Where are we going?” she asked, changing the subject slightly.

“I found a clearing in the woods,” he shared. “It’s the perfect place to do magic and not be seen.”

“A clearing in the woods?” Sabrina asked curiously. She thought she knew where they were going.

“It looks like a place people did magic in the past,” he continued. “There’s an old altar there and you can feel the magic in the place. Magic lingers, you know. When it’s powerful or there’s been a lot of it used. I was practically vibrating with it when I was there.” He noticed Sabrina was smiling. “What?”

“I was born in that clearing,” she shared. “My family has done a number of rituals there over the centuries. I signed the Book of the Beast there, on that very altar.”

“Really?” Nick asked. “I didn’t find some magical place no one in Greendale knew of by chance?”

“Hate to break it to you, but no,” Sabrina shook her head, playing along with him. “I am curious though – how did you find it?”

“I went for a walk earlier,” he admitted. “I was wandering around and happened upon it.” He glanced at her. “You were born in that clearing?”

“It’s a long story, but yes,” Sabrina nodded. She wasn’t comfortable telling him more, but it was no secret that her mother had given birth to her there. It was common knowledge among the Church of Night. “Honestly? I thought all witches were born in the woods until I was about ten or so. My aunt Zelda is a midwife and I woke up one night when she was leaving to deliver a baby. I asked if she was going to the woods and she said ‘no child, her house, like a normal witch.’ Hilda, my other aunt, had to explain to me that witches typically give birth in the comfort of their own home after that.”

Nick chuckled.

“You’re definitely the only witch I know to have been born in the woods.” He glanced at her again. He didn’t think it was possible, but the moonlight, the same color as her hair, made her even more beautiful. Her usual red lipstick had mostly worn away after a day’s wear, but it was still there, still staining her lips just so. “Did you have fun with your friends last night?”

Sabrina was the one who glanced at him curiously then. In most situations, it would have been a standard question, one used to make small talk or a friend inquiring about the other’s life. But coming from Nick, there was something else there, an underlying inquisitiveness that highlighted what she thought was a hint of nervousness. What he could be nervous about she didn’t know, but it was there nonetheless, even if he didn’t recognize it.

“I did,” she answered. “I don’t get to see them much, so it’s always good when I get a chance to spend time with them.”

“You dated the tall weird one, didn’t you?”

“Harvey isn’t weird,” Sabrina defended.

“So that’s a yes,” Nick said more to himself than her.

“We dated,” Sabrina admitted anyway. “We broke up about six months ago. We’re only just getting to a place where we’re friends again.”

“Why did you break up?” he asked.

“You’re full of questions tonight,” Sabrina countered.

“Just curious. The guy looked at me like I was a threat when I showed up at your place last night.”

“Maybe he’s got good instincts,” Sabrina quipped.

“Highly unlikely,” Nick retorted. “Unless…” He looked at her with that crooked grin of his. “I am a threat?”

“Hardly,” Sabrina scoffed. Nick chuckled a bit.

“Seriously, why did you break up?” He wasn’t sure why he wanted to know, but there was a morbid curiosity burning inside of him about Sabrina, her mortal friends, her one foot in each part of her being world. “Was he too tall? Too odd?” He smirked again. “A bad kisser? That was it, wasn’t it?”

“You’re incorrigible,” Sabrina stated. “We broke up because I’m a witch and he’s a mortal.” Nick considered her once more as they walked.

“But you’re half mortal,” he argued. “I would think magic or mortal wouldn’t matter to you.”

Sabrina sighed. This was more personal than she wanted to get with Nick.

“It just didn’t work out,” she said. “I chose to embrace my witch side and with that came sacrifices. Harvey was one of them.”

“Do you still love him?”

Sabrina noted how Nick stumbled a bit over the word love like it was a foreign concept, a word he had never said out loud before.

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “At least, not in the same way.”

A dozen more questions popped into Nick’s head about Sabrina’s relationship, what she meant about ‘love’ and it being different now than it was before. Instead, he shifted his focus to the fact that they were about to walk into woods.

“I hope you’re not afraid of the forest at night,” he said as they stepped into the cover of the trees. It was darker here, the moonbeams largely blocked by the thick canopy of the trees.

“Please,” Sabrina sniffed. “I know these woods like the back of my hand. I played out here my entire childhood. I cut through the woods to the Academy every day.”

“So I don’t need to tell you about all the wild animals that could attack us? The woodland spirits that may not want us intruding on their space?”

“I was born in these woods, remember? I’m more at home here than I am pretty much anywhere aside from the mortuary.”

Nick had no idea how true that was. Sabrina didn’t fit in at the Academy. She didn’t fit in at Baxter High either. Hilda always told her that was because she was meant to stand out, but Hilda wasn’t the one on the receiving end of being the odd girl that lived in a mortuary with her eclectic aunts at Baxter, the half-breed at the Academy that more than one classmate thought didn’t belong there. Even if Hilda was right and she was meant to stand out, it would be nice to feel like she belonged – anywhere.

“You do remind me of a wood nymph,” Nick mused.

“I think that’s supposed to be a compliment?” Sabrina asked. Nick grinned.

“It is, Spellman.”

The smile they exchanged was dangerous. Sabrina felt it in her bones. There was something about Nicholas Scratch that drew her in, just as much as something else told her to keep him at arm’s length. She chalked it up to him being a charming warlock. Most warlocks were. It was how they lured in lovers or people to do their bidding. It was also how they left a trail of heartache in their wake.

The pair fell silent as they walked. Nick liked Sabrina’s company. She showed no sign of fear, except for maybe some distrust in him which he could hardly deny her. She was confident, collected. He could feel the power she held. He found himself looking forward to doing magic with her, sensing he may have finally found an equal to perform certain spells with. And if anything else transpired between them? All the better.

When they arrived at the clearing, Nick swore the air changed. It was as though the space recognized Sabrina, welcomed her. If she felt it, she showed no sign of it.

“Okay, Scratch,” she declared. She produced the jar from her bag. “Show me what you’ve got.”

“First, we need a salt circle.” He produced a bag she hadn’t noticed he was carrying. “And candles.”

“I’ll take care of the candles.”

They set to work. Nick watched her out of the corner of his eye as she set the candles around in their exact locations. When they were all in position, she said a quick spell and they erupted into flames.

“Nice,” he complimented.

“Glad you think it’s so impressive a mere witch can light a few candles,” Sabrina shot back. To her surprise, Nick grinned at her sarcasm.

“I was referring to the efficiency and strength of the spell,” he said. “But think what you want, Spellman.” Sabrina didn’t say anything in response, but she felt a hint of something that felt a bit like feeling bad for assuming the worst about his intentions. “Salt is down. Ready for the next part?”

“Symbols?” Sabrina guessed, remembering the spell she had memorized.

“You want to do the honors?” Nick countered.

Sabrina hesitated.

She wanted to say yes. She thought she could do it. But this was advanced magic. This was the kind of magic she was chomping at the bit to learn, but doing it out in the open without any safety measures in place as there would be in the Academy with a warlock she barely knew and didn’t entirely trust made her uneasy. She waffled, debating on if she wanted to give in to the logic that told her to step aside and let him take over or if she wanted to take a deep breath and go for it.

“Give it a shot,” Nick encouraged as though he sensed her inner conflict. He held out a stick she hadn’t seen him procure. “I’m here if things go south.”

She took the stick and turned her back to him, her mind made up. She took a big breath and set to work, trying to remember, exactly, the intricate symbols on the piece of parchment she had studied so closely. Nick watched her work. She was slow, intentional. He could practically see her thinking as she drew each line with the precision of a surgeon. He himself could have drawn it out in a matter of moments, but he let Sabrina do it. His instincts told him she was more than capable. She just had to get out of her own way.

“Perfect.” he declared when she finished. He picked up the jar she had delicately placed on the ground a few minutes earlier. “Ready?”

“Sure,” Sabrina nodded. She watched Nick carefully place the jar in the middle of her symbols. “So, Batibat won’t be able to get out of those bindings, right? And we’re in the salt circle, which adds another layer of protection?”

Nick looked at her. She looked not afraid, exactly, but a little more nervous than she had just minutes earlier.

“Batibat really did a number on you, didn’t she, Spellman?” he guessed.

“I’d rather not re-live it,” Sabrina said bitterly.

“Fair enough,” Nick agreed. He held his hand out. “Ready when you are.”

She looked from his hand to him and back again.

“And why do we need to hold hands?”

“Because we’re going to be a Heaven of a lot more powerful connected,” Nick said. Overheard, the moon shined brightly through the open sky above them in the clearing, further energizing the brewing magic he could feel between them. “This is how it’s done, Spellman. You know that.”

She did know that. She had held her aunts’ hands in rituals a dozen times. She had done the same with classmates. But something inside of her was afraid of taking hold of Nick’s hand. It felt like everything would change the moment her palm met his.

She reached out and took her hand in his.

Something akin to electricity worked through both of them. Their eyes met, but they broke eye contact quickly. They each told themselves it was their individual power, recognizing something similar in the other. It didn’t mean anything.

“Ready when you are,” Sabrina managed.

Nick nodded once and turned his attention to the jar. Beside him, Sabrina did the same.

“I’m going to break the jar,” he told Sabrina, thinking it best to warn her given her past experience with Batibat. “She’s going to fly at us, but she’s not going to be able to get to us. When she assumes her solid form, we start chanting.”

“Okay,” Sabrina agreed.

Nick said a short Latin phrase. The jar shattered. Batibat erupted from it. She wasted no time in assuming her solid form and lunging towards Sabrina and Nick. Despite Nick’s warning, it still took Sabrina by surprise. She took a step back, but Nick’s grip on her hand tightened, keeping her present with him. As Batibat shrieked and raged against the invisible barrier keeping her sealed in, Nick began to chant. Sabrina quickly regained her composure and joined him.

They went through the spell twice. Batibat fought, clawing at the air and screeching as she battled the pull back to Hell.

“Spellmans!” she shrieked. “Spellmans!”

Halfway through the third chant, a fiery pit opened in the symbols. Batibat let out one last high-pitched shriek before she was pulled entirely back into the depths from which she came. The silence that followed her demise was almost deafening.

Sabrina dropped Nick’s hand and pulled in a deep, calming breath.

“You okay, Spellman?” Nick asked.

“Yeah,” she nodded, breath still fast. “That was – a lot.”

“It was,” Nick agreed. He was barely winded. “But she’s gone now.”

Sabrina remembered a thought she had earlier in the day while sitting on her bed to memorize the spell. She turned to Nick.

“Couldn’t you have just banished her when you found her at the mortuary?” she asked. “Fist in palm or whatever?” Left to her own devices and having not inked her name in the Book of the Beast yet, Sabrina hadn’t known how to banish the demon completely, so she had trapped it in the vase. Nick, however, seemed to be more than capable of handling a demon like Batibat.

“I could have,” Nick admitted. He had even considered it. “But this spell banished her in a way that will keep her from being conjured for use against your family again. It’s a banishing spell, but it is also a protective spell.”

Sabrina took her time forming her words. Nick had effectively ensured her family wouldn’t be taunted by Batibat again. It wasn’t something he needed to do. She certainly hadn’t asked him to take things that far.

“Thank you,” she said solemnly. “I asked you for your help because I knew you could handle a demon a lot faster than I could. I didn’t expect you to go this far though.”

“Like I said, it was a chance to do some cool magic,” Nick brushed off the gratitude. He wasn’t used to being on the receiving end of it – not that he had ever given it either. “Besides, I got the benefit of her not bothering me in the future either.” He smirked. “And you got to do magic you wouldn’t get to do at the Academy.”

“How did you learn how to do that?” Sabrina wondered.

“I read about it,” Nick admitted. “Tonight was the first time I actually got to try it.”

“So you didn’t know if it would work,” Sabrina deciphered.

“I will admit there was a bit of a question mark there, but I figured… Why not try?” Sabrina shook her head. Had she known this was a total experiment for Nick, she would have never agreed. Or – would she? She had liked how it felt, power surging through her, swirling around her. It was something she wanted to feel again.

“That was risky,” she stated.

“It worked out,” Nick shrugged a shoulder. “We’re fine, Batibat is gone.”

“You’re a regular risk taker, aren’t you, Scratch?”

“What’s life without a little bit of risk?” Nick countered. Sabrina just shook her head again. She took her own fair share of risks, but not as boldly as trying a spell she had only just read about for the first time with a demon capable of recking havoc at stake. She didn’t think he was talking about the spell, however, and it was confirmed when he smiled at her. “You did well, Spellman. There’s a lot of power in that lithe body of yours.”

“Does that generally work for you?” Sabrina asked. “Using words like ‘pretty’ and complimenting a woman’s body to lure her into bed? I can’t imagine what you say to warlocks.”

“Women tend to like compliments,” Nick countered. His signature smirk returned. “Warlocks tend to be a little easier to persuade.” Sabrina rolled her eyes so dramatically Nick saw the whites of them. “But Sabrina? You are beautiful. I’m not lying when I say that. That’s just a simple fact.”

Sabrina hoped the darkness hid her blush.

“I should get back to the mortuary,” she decided, sensing how the air around them had shfited. “Thanks again for doing this, Nick. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.” She took no more than two steps before Nick stopped her with a hand on his elbow. She looked at him curiously.

“Two things. One, I’m not cleaning up this mess alone.” Sabrina narrowed her eyes at him. “And two, I’m certainly not letting you walk home alone.”

“You can clean this mess up with a sweep of your arm,” she informed him. “I can get home by myself…”

“It’s nearly eleven o’clock. I’m not letting you walk home by yourself.” He didn’t know why. He had let witches and warlocks alike walk home alone in worse situations many times over. But with Sabrina he felt – was it protective? It was a foreign feeling and an odd one at that. She was more than capable of taking care of herself.

“Careful, Scratch,” Sabrina said. “Word might get out that you have a sliver of chivalry in you.”

“Only with you,” he quipped. He didn’t see Sabrina’s eyes widen at the comment. He turned and swept his hand across the clearing. The candles disappeared.

“One wave of your hand,” Sabrina repeated with a hint of indignation.

“I left the salt circle for you,” he jerked a thumb towards the circle. Sabrina glared at him and snapped her fingers. The circle vanished. He chuckled. “I just need to remove the symbols, then we can go.”

Nick moved away from her. Sabrina remained where she was, arms crossed over her chest, and watched him as he muttered a spell that sent the symbols sinking into the earth and out of sight. He turned back to her, both with a quick-witted retort on the tip of their tongues, but a strange, sudden breeze filled the space. It lifted Sabrina’s hair off her neck and ruffled Nick’s curls. On its tail came a faint but clear ghostly moan.

It was gone as quickly as it appeared.

“What was that?” Sabrina asked with a sense of urgency.

“I don’t know,” Nick said. He crossed the space between them quickly. “It wasn’t a natural breeze though.”

“No,” Sabrina agreed, her eyes searching the space for any sign of what it could have been. Nick did the same. “It felt – sinister.”

Whatever it was had felt like a distant threat. Something in Sabrina told her they weren’t in immediate danger, but that there was danger lurking nonetheless.

“Let’s get out of here.”

Nick looped an arm around Sabrina’s waist and before she could protest, she was sucked into the void. They reappeared in the mortuary yard a moment later. Sabrina took a startled breath and stumbled into Nick, her hands going to his chest to catch herself. He responded by tightening his grip around her. She was suddenly hyper aware of how close they were, but that was pushed away by more pressing matters as she shoved away from him.

“First time teleporting?” Nick guessed. He felt – cold – as he released her. Even in the brief moment he held her to him, he hadn’t missed how well she fit against him.

“You could have warned me!” Sabrina exclaimed as she smoothed her hands over her skirt.

“I did,” Nick stated. “I said ‘let’s get out of here.’”

“That’s not warning someone,” Sabrina argued. “I thought we were walking home!”

“With whatever that was drifting through the woods? Hard pass on walking, Spellman.” He grinned at her irritation. “Teleporting was so much faster.”

“Still, a little warning…”

“Not a fan of teleporting?” Nick asked.

“It wasn’t comfortable,” Sabrina admitted. “Especially when I had no idea it was happening.”

“It’ll get better,” Nick promised. He tilted his head towards the house. “Go inside, Spellman. It’s late and the spirits like to get up to their evil deeds around the witching hour.”

Sabrina remained right where she was.

“What about you?” she asked. “Are you going back to the Academy? Or are you going to get up to evil deeds of your own?”

“Where else would I go?” Nick countered. “And with whom would I get into evil deeds with? By this hour, everyone has already paired off – or grouped off – for the evening. I’m going to teleport back to the Academy the moment you’re inside. Besides, I’m in no hurry to run into whatever that was again.”

Sabrina felt warm at the idea that Nick planned to make sure she inside before he teleported away. It was considerate of him, to wait like that.

“What do you think it was?” she wondered. “A spirit of some sort?”

“Maybe,” he nodded. “Magic lurks in those woods though. It could have been anything. Probably nothing to worry about.”

“Do you believe that?” Sabrina countered.

“No reason not to,” Nick said, although he had an inkling it was something more. “It did us no harm, and we were ripe for the taken.”

“If you say so,” she doubted.

“No need to worry about it if its gone, right?” he asked. “Go get your beauty rest, Spellman.” He grinned. “Not that you need it.” Sabrina rolled her eyes.

“Thank you,” she said again. “For your help with Batibat. Really, Nick…”

“It was nothing,” he shook his head. “Go inside, Spellman. I’ll see you at school in the morning.”

“Sleep well, Nick,” Sabrina said as she turned towards the house. It was Nick who felt warm now. Again, he pushed it down.

“Sleep well,” he echoed.

She felt him watch her as she climbed the mortuary stairs, just as he said he would. When she was inside, the door closed and locked behind her, she peeked through the curtains. The warlock was gone.

“Sneaking in?”

Sabrina jumped at Ambrose’s voice. She turned to find him emerging from the hallway that led to the kitchen, a cup of steaming tea in one hand, a plate with a slice of cake in the other.

“Do you always have to do that?” she chided. “Lurk in the shadows and startle me?”

“I have little to look forward to in my day-to-day life,” he said. He was joking, but there was also a layer of truth there. House arrest meant he had to make his own fun. “Where have you been, cousin?”

Sabrina had intended to keep her late-night excursion – and Batibat’s escape, re-capture, and banishment – to herself. But after whatever happened in the woods, she felt compelled to confide in Ambrose.

“You can’t tell the aunts…”

No,” Ambrose shook his head. “No, no, no, no, no. I am not being drawn into another one of your escapades. No. Nope. Not this time.”

“Harvey broke the vase that held Batibat,” Sabrina plowed on. Ambrose looked at her sharply. “We were playing charades, he stumbled into the shelf, the vase broke. Total accident.”

“That’s why you came upstairs asking for Nicholas,” Ambrose realized. “I meant to question that, but I’ve been indisposed today.”

“You’ve been hungover,” Sabrina countered. “But yes, that’s why I came to get Nick. I knew he could capture her faster than I could. I didn’t want to risk my friends’ safety. He captured Batibat in a jar and then told me we could banish her…”

“Ah, so you’ve been out with Nicholas,” Ambrose’s eyes sparkled. “As salty as I am that you snagged that fine piece of warlock from our gaggle, I can’t fault you.” Sabrina rolled her eyes.

“I was with Nick,” she confirmed despite her annoyance at Ambrose. “We did a banishing spell in the clearing. He said it would keep Batibat from bothering our family again.”

“Wait,” Ambrose interrupted. “You and Nick just did a Protected Binding spell?”

“Is that what it’s called?” Sabrina countered. “Anyway, yes, we did…”

“My Satan,” Ambrose exclaimed. “That’s incredibly complicated magic…”

“Well, it worked,” Sabrina shrugged. The spell wasn’t her concern. “We were cleaning up and about to leave when this weird breeze blew through. It had a whisper of a moan on the end of it, almost like the moan was chasing it.”

“You sure it wasn’t just a breeze?” She heard Ambrose’s skepticism.

“It wasn’t,” she insisted. “Nick felt it too. It felt sinister.”

“You were in the woods – Greendale’s woods at that – in the middle of the night,” Ambrose reasoned. “It’s hard to tell what’s lingering out there, especially as the witching hour approaches.”

“So you think it’s nothing to worry about?” Sabrina wondered.

“I wouldn’t put much stock in it,” he confirmed, just as Nick had said. “If I were you, I would be kicking myself for not doing more than a bit of magic with that warlock though.”

“And that’s my cue to go to bed,” Sabrina stated. She left Ambrose chuckling as he headed into the parlor with his late-night snack.

Upstairs, she greeted Salem and changed into her pajamas. She meant to go to bed, but she drifted towards the window that looked out over the forest instead. The full moon was high in the sky, bright and shining. If anyone else looked through the glass, they would see a calm, peaceful night.

But not Sabrina.

Nothing looked amiss.

But something felt off.

She thought Nick felt it too.

* * *

Sabrina questioned her judgment.

Despite her stand against Dorian’s “warlocks only” rule, she herself didn’t frequent the bar. Other witches at the Academy certainly enjoyed the consequences of her deeming the rule archaic, but she just didn’t see the appeal of the place. It was all too strong drinks, illicit drugs, and things better left to bedrooms. She didn’t want to think about what happened in the private rooms.

And yet, there she was, sipping politely on a vodka and cranberry and wishing she were at home, curled up with a book or else catching up with her aunts. But she had promised Elsbeth and Melvin she would join them and so she had. Right along with the rest of the Academy on a Thursday night, it seemed.

The energy in the room changed.

No one else noticed, but Sabrina did. She shifted her body to look towards the door.

Nicholas Scratch had arrived.

She quickly turned back to her friends. She hadn’t talked to him since Sunday night’s banishing adventure. He was generally surrounded by admirers or else, as was the case on Tuesday, she had been the one in Blackwood’s office, this time for ‘blatant disrespect’ of school rules when she had dared to question why her demonology teacher had allowed only the warlocks to practice calling forth the least of demons. He had approached her at lunch that day, but before he could say more than her name, Blackwood had called him to his office.

Several minutes passed with her absorbed in conversation with Elsbeth, Nick’s presence nearly forgotten. Still, she felt him approach.

“Spellman.”

Sabrina took a moment to purse her lips and steel herself. This, Dorian’s, was Nick’s kind of place. He had been in town for less than two weeks, but she had already heard about him disappearing into a private room with a warlock one night, a couple of witches another. She turned to him.

“Nick.”

“What are you drinking?” he asked. “And can I buy you another one?”

“Seriously?” Sabrina countered. “You’re using that as a pickup line?”

“Figured it was worth a shot,” Nick said easily. He turned his attention to her friends while Sabrina huffed out her annoyance. “You’re Melvin, right?” he addressed the warlock in a sweater vest and bowtie.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m Melvin,” Melvin stumbled over his words. His drink sloshed dangerously as he struggled upright from where he had been slouched into his armchair’s cushions. “Sorry. I didn’t know you knew my name.”

Sabrina had to work not to roll her eyes at the way Melvin fangirled over Nick.

“You melted your cauldron in potions yesterday,” Nick reminded him. “The professor used your name a lot.”

“Oh yeah,” Melvin made a face. “I added the fire seed before the bat spleen and....”

“And the fire seed got too hot,” Nick finished. Melvin blushed. “Don’t worry about it. Everyone has to melt a cauldron at some point.” He turned his attention to Elsbeth. “I don’t think we’ve met yet. I’m Nicholas.”

“Elsbeth,” she said with a faint blush. Sabrina sighed to herself. Her friends were falling all over the charismatic warlock.

“Elsbeth,” Nick repeated. “Nice to meet you.” He turned his attention back to Sabrina. “How are you? I haven’t had a chance to talk to you this week.”

Sabrina raised an eyebrow. He sounded – genuine. She also heard what he was actually asking. He wanted to know how she was after Sunday night’s adventure in the woods.

“I’m fine,” she told him. “It’s been a long week.”

“And now you’re here,” Nick said, his words dripping with insinuation.

“I’m not staying long,” she informed him.

“Why not?” Nick countered. “Tomorrow is Friday. What’s a late night now?” Sabrina gave him a look but didn’t retort.

“Hey, Nicholas,” Melvin started, inserting himself into the conversation with a false sense of bravery. Sabrina knew it would mean everything to Melvin for Nick to consider him a friend. Melvin was one of the nicest warlocks she knew, but he was also a bit aloof and entirely odd. He had a hard time fitting in, even more so than she did, and Nicholas Scratch’s approval would bolster his confidence. “I heard you did a really advanced binding today…”

“I did,” he confirmed. His eyes flickered to Sabrina. “That’s why I got called to Blackwood’s office during lunch. He took me out of binding.”

“Finally get that independent study?” Sabrina couldn’t help herself.

“I did.” Nick had the good sense to look bashful.

“Took you less than two week,” Sabrina mused, miffed that he had managed to do in under two weeks what she had been trying to accomplish for six months.

“Good news is, I’m still in chorus.” He leaned towards her. “I couldn’t leave you without a tenor.”

“Lucky me,” Sabrina said dryly. She downed the last of her drink. “I think I’m going to head home…”

“What?” Elsbeth exclaimed. “No! You can’t go yet…”

“I haven’t slept well this week,” she tried. “And I’ve got some homework…”

“One more drink, Spellman,” Nick spoke up. “Like I said, it’s practically the weekend. Come on.”

He didn’t give her a chance to protest. He pulled her to her feet, and she was so startled by his sudden movements that she allowed him to lead her several feet before she thought to protest.

“Nick!” she snatched her elbow out of his grasp. “What are you doing?”

“Hang out with me, Spellman,” he said. “You’re the only one here I’m interested in talking to.”

“Prudence and her sisters are over there,” Sabrina jerked her chin towards them. “They will be happy to talk to you.”

“Been there, done that,” he dismissed. “Come on, Spellman. You went into the deep dark woods with me the other night and I didn’t try anything, did I?”

“No,” she begrudgingly admitted. “Unless you count the ‘pretty’ comment.”

“Hang out with me,” he said again. He couldn’t put his finger on why he was so pulled towards Sabrina, but tonight, he wanted to lean into it. He had wanted to lean into it all week, but hadn’t been afforded the opportunity. “For an hour. I’ll buy you a drink and then you can go home.”

Sabrina waivered. She did sort of want to stick around. Ambrose was always telling her she didn’t get along with her classmates because she didn’t put in the effort. This, hanging out at Dorian’s for another hour, could be good for her. It could help her ease towards figuring out who she was, how she fit into things at the Academy.

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll stay. For an hour.”

Nick’s smile seemed even brighter in the dark room.

“What are you drinking Spellman?” he asked as they resumed their trek towards the bar.

“Vodka and cranberry.”

“Try this.” Nick held out his drink. She looked at it with a weary eye. “You think I spiked it or something, don’t you?”

“You were just talking about potions class,” Sabrina said. “Who knows what you might have brewed up.”

“I’ll play dirty, but I won’t do something like that,” he said with a sincerity Sabrina hadn’t heard from him. “I personally subscribe to the belief that everyone has a right to their choices.”

Sabrina’s wall was still firmly up, but a single brick fell off, weakening that wall just a little. WIthout a word, she reached out and took his glass. She took a sip and felt the liquid burn in a way that surprised her. She kind of liked it.

“What is that?” she asked.

“Bourbon,” Nick answered as he studied her. “Straight, quality bourbon at that. You didn’t even flinch.”

“Should I have?” Sabrina questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“Not to be stereotypical, but most girls do,” he nodded. “Bourbon is strong. Most people mix it with something.”

“Well I liked it,” she decided. “If you’re buying me a drink, you can buy me one of those.”

Nick smirked but said nothing. He waved down Dorian and ordered two bourbons. The look Sabrina gave Dorian made him stop his questions on his tongue. Nick handed her one of the glasses. She expected him to lead her towards a quiet corner of the bar, but Nick steered her back to Elsbeth and Melvin. He took the seat next to the chair Sabrina had perched in.

For the better part of an hour, Sabrina watched as Nick made easy conversation with Elsbeth and Melvin. She couldn’t tell if he was being genuine or playing along, but she found that if she were forced to choose, she would say his behavior was genuine. It furthered the conflict she felt about him. He was too smart, too flashy, too charming, entirely too good looking. And yet he was also – something she couldn’t put her finger on.

“Dance with me, Spellman,” he said after a while.

“What?” she questioned, having been lost in thought. He nodded towards the packed dance floor.

“Dance with me,” he said again. “Before you turn into a pumpkin and have to get home.” He got to his feet and took her long empty glass from her. She had been holding onto it like a safety blanket. “Come on.”

Later, she would blame the bourbon and her earlier vodka and cranberry for impairing her good judgment. But for now, she allowed him to take her hand and lead her into the throng of bodies.

Dancing with Nick proved intoxicating. It took her a minute to let go of her self-consciousness and feel the music. The next thing she knew, she and Nick were dancing close, his hands on her hips, hers on his shoulders. Without thinking, she reached up and ran a hand through his curls. He smirked devilishly and pulled her even closer.

Nick thought he might be drunk. He wasn’t. He had only had two glasses of bourbon, distracted by Sabrina, her friends. But the petite witch dancing in his arms had managed to entirely enchant him. If he hadn’t known better, he would think she put a spell on him. He wanted her closer. He wanted _her_.

He brought her closer. There was no space between them and again, he noted how her small body seemed to fit against him like a puzzle piece clicked into place.

Their eyes met.

Sabrina couldn’t look away. His eyes were like magnets, pulling her in. He reached out a hand and brushed away a stray chunk of hair that had escaped her headband while they danced. Again, they both felt the surge of something between them like they had the night before.

Nick leaned in.

He was a whisper away from landing his lips on hers when Sabrina came to her senses.

“I should go.”

She pulled away enough to put some space between them, but Nick’s arms were still around her. She hadn’t let go of him either.

“Sabrina…”

“It’s late,” she rambled. “I’ve already stayed longer than I said I would. I’m going to… Go.”

She pulled away fully and Nick let her leave. He ran a frustrated hand through his curls as he stood in the middle of the dance floor alone, wondering what in the hell had just happened.

He needed a drink.

At the bar, he signaled for another bourbon and took a seat on a stool. His entire body felt like a livewire. Sabrina’s body against his had felt so damned _good._ Not good in the “just for a night” sense either. Good as in… Well, he didn’t know. He hadn’t experienced feeling like he had been absolutely lit on fire and left to burn before. Sabrina was hot, then cold, bringing him in only to push him away. It was messing with his head. He just needed to get her out of his system, a task that was proving difficult.

Dorian slid him his bourbon and he took a long dreg.

“Nicky.”

He groaned.

“Go away, Prudence.”

“Sabrina left you a little blue, did she?” She searched out the bartender. “Dorian? Be a dear and make me another martini.”

“Of course, darling,” Dorian drawled from nearby.

“I’m not in the mood for it, Prudence,” Nick warned. His path had crossed with the formidable witch and her sisters over a year ago when they were on a sabbatical in Spain. The foursome had a wild few weeks and then went their separate ways. He had hoped it would stay that way.

“You want the little blonde witch, don’t you?” she continued. “I told you, Nicky, she’s as pure as pure can be. She’s not going to fall for your warlock charms.”

Nick drained the rest of the bourbon in his glass. Dorian had left the bottle in front of him. He snagged it and poured himself another round.

“She wants me,” he heard himself saying. “She’s just – cautious.”

He sensed trouble when Prudence’s lips turned into a smirk.

“You’ve finally found a being resistant to your charms,” she drawled.

“She’s not resistant,” Nick said. He was certain of that. There was definitely attraction between them. “She’s – hesitant.”

“You can’t get her,” Prudence taunted. “And it’s bothering you.”

“Perhaps I thought I might be making progress,” Nick was just drunk enough to admit. “You wouldn’t be here taunting me if I was successful.”

“We could make this interesting,” Prudence suggested.

“Interesting how?” Nick asked with thick skepticism.

“We could bet on it.”

Nick shook his head.

“That’s a terrible idea,” he stated.

“Is it?” Prudence cooed. “It’s not like you to back down from a challenge.”

“I’m not backing down…”

“You are,” Prudence pressed. Her eyes glittered. “You obviously don’t think you can be successful.”

“I can be successful,” Nick said. “She’s just a little bit more straitlaced than most witches.”

“Oh Nicky, you have no idea,” Prudence shook her head. “She’s incredibly stubborn and even more self-righteous.” Her eyes fixed on Nick’s. “She’s also a virgin. Seems she believes in things like _love_ and waiting for the right person.”

“She’s half mortal,” Nick reminded her. “Perhaps she just takes a little longer to persuade.”

“So you still think you can persuade her,” Prudence noted.

“Of course I can,” Nick said with more confidence than he actually had. “She’s just taking a little longer to come around.”

“If you’re so confident, let’s make a bet,” Prudence pressed.

“Oh, a bet,” Dorian appeared with Prudence’s martini. “What are we gambling on?”

Prudence accepted the martini from Dorian, but kept her eyes on Nick.

“We’re betting on whether Nicky here can get Sabrina Spellman to give it up.”

“Interesting,” Dorian leaned on the counter with folded arms.

“This sounds like a terrible idea,” Nick waivered.

“It’s a brilliant idea,” Dorian encouraged.

“Come on, Nicky,” Prudence challenged. “If you’re such a suave warlock, prove it.” She smirked again. “Unless you don’t think you can land Sabrina Spellman.”

“I can land Sabrina Spellman,” Nick stated. “There’s no doubt in that.”

Prudence practically glowed.

“It’s a bet then,” she determined. “You’ve got….” she pretended to think. “One month.”

“What are the terms?” Nick asked.

Deep down, he knew this was wrong. He could feel the inkling of something he thought might be his conscience telling him this was a bad idea, that someone, most likely Sabrina, was going to get hurt. But he had a reputation and he hadn’t earned it by being straight and narrow. He wanted Sabrina and if he got something out of it from Prudence too? That much the better. And the closer he got to Sabrina, the more he would learn about her father.

“The loser has to perform a feat of magic at the winner’s request without question,” Prudence said too quickly for her to have not already thought about it. “And without any hesitation.”

“That’s it?” Nick asked. “You’re going to read someone’s mind for me when I ask you to without questioning my reasons?”

“No,” Prudence shook her head. “You’re going to do some conjuring for me. Or binding. Or ritual magic. Lucky for me, you’ve got a myriad of skills.”

“Sure of yourself, aren’t you?” Nick asked, taking in Prudence’s confidence.

“I’ve known Sabrina a lot longer than you,” she reminded him. “This is an easy bet to win.”

“You say that now.” Nick polished off the last of his bourbon, took out his wallet, and left a fat bill on the counter for Dorian. “You will be eating your words, Prudence Night.”

“Blackwood,” she corrected.

“No,” Nick said with a shake of his head. “I think I’ve got it right.”

He left Dorian’s then, mind turning over how, exactly, he was going to get Sabrina Spellman to give in to him.

And beat Prudence Night at her own game in the process.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing about this bet is going to end well. Nick already knows that and yet... Off he goes... 
> 
> I love how everyone immediately is picking up on Sabrina's struggles between mortal and witch. That's a huge subplot and I'm glad it's already shining through. ;) 
> 
> Let me know what you thought about this update!


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're all in agreement that the bet couldn't possibly go wrong... Good... Let's let Nick start to woo the girl.

Sabrina broke off a piece of the freshly baked bacon cheddar scone in front of her and popped it into her mouth. She reached for her coffee, turned it up, and drained the last dregs. She summoned the carafe to her and poured a fresh cup. It was only after she had added cream and sugar that she realized her aunts and Ambrose were all looking at her.

“What?” she wanted to know. Ambrose chuckled into his cup of coffee. He didn’t know what was going on, but he knew more than his aunts did and could wager a decent guess as to why Sabrina was on her second cup of coffee.

“Did you bother going to sleep last night?” Zelda wondered in an accusatory tone.

“I slept…”

“You look tired, love,” Hilda offered in a much kinder voice. “And you’re on your second cup of coffee. You never have a second cup of coffee.”

“I went to Dorian’s with Elsbeth and Melvin,” Sabrina told them. “I stayed longer than I meant to.”

An understatement.

When she got home the night before, she immediately changed into pajamas and intended to go straight to bed. But after an hour of tossing and turning, she gave up on falling asleep and drew a bubble bath where she soaked and pondered her almost kiss with Nick.

The only thing she could think of was the fact that she _almost_ wished she hadn’t pulled away.

Almost.

Nick was dangerous. Most warlocks were, some more than others, and Nick certainly went to the extreme end of that spectrum. But there was a part of her that always tried to see the good in people. That part got her in trouble more often than not. Her tendency to see the good in others is what usually led her down the path of fighting for something on their behalf and effectively rocking the boat, be it at Baxter High or, now, the Academy. Yet it was also the part of her that told her it wouldn’t have been the worst thing if she kissed Nick. It would have been just a kiss, after all. She wouldn’t have had to do anything else.

“Dorian’s, hey?” Ambrose asked as he buttered a piece of toast. “Was Nicholas there?”

“Who is Nicholas?” Hilda wondered.

“Nicholas Scratch?” Zelda asked at the same time. “Are you spending time with him?”

Sabrina glared at Ambrose. He pretended not to notice and carried on with eating his breakfast.

“Nick was there,” she said carefully. “So were the Weird Sisters and at least half of the other students from the Academy. It tends to be busy on Thursday nights.”

“Nicholas is quite the warlock,” Zelda commented. She used a fork and butterknife to neatly cut into her scone.

“Who is Nicholas?” Hilda repeated. Her eyes lit up. “Wait! He’s the new student. Cee mentioned he cursed that awful Billy Marlin while he was making fun of dear, sweet Theo.”

“Oh?” Ambrose perked up. “I didn’t hear about that.”

“Oh yes, Cee saw the whole thing,” Hilda continued. “Billy was teasing Theo and Sabrina jumped to Theo’s defense…”

“Of course she did,” Zelda muttered under her breath. Sabrina gave her a look.

“While she was telling him off, Billy broke into an awful rash. Cee thought Sabrina did it, of course, as he didn’t know the boy at the bar was a warlock until Sabrina told him. Cee said he was a delightful young man. He tried to make his meal on the house as a thank you for coming to Theo’s defense, but the boy insisted on paying. When Cee wouldn’t accept his money, he went into the book shop and picked up several novels. Spent quite a bit from what Cee told me.”

“You really do love to gossip, don’t you?” Ambrose wondered. No one paid him any attention.

“‘Delightful’ isn’t a word I would use to describe Nicholas,” Sabrina stated.

“Nicholas is a formidable warlock,” Zelda said. “You could learn a thing or two from him.”

“You most certainly could,” Ambrose agreed. Sabrina kicked him under the table. He yelped and tried to kick her back, but she dodged him. The aunts ignored their bickering. It was the equivalent of white noise at this point.

“Nicholas is a stereotypical warlock,” Sabrina insisted. “He’s a bad boy. That’s not my type.”

“A bad boy, you say?” Hilda questioned. “Not from what Cee said…”

“Trust me, Hilda, he’s not a saint,” Sabrina told her. “The Academy is his fourth school in two years. He has broken more rules in the two weeks he’s been at the Academy than I have in my entire time there.” She looked at Zelda then. “Of course, Nicholas’ rule breaking is celebrated because he’s a warlock doing advanced magic and not a mere witch who should be seen but not heard.”

“It is too early for your equality crusades,” Zelda said coolly.

On the outside, she looked to resist Sabrina’s efforts to be treated as equal to her male counterparts. She knew it rubbed Sabrina the wrong way. What her niece didn’t know was her own efforts, slow going as they may be, to further her agenda from her own position of power within the Academy. Zelda Spellman was playing the long game and some day, whether tomorrow or a century from now, the Academy and in turn, their coven, would look a lot different.

It would look as her brother intended it to.

“Most warlocks are a bit… How do I put this?” Hilda wondered.

“Horn dogs,” Ambrose supplied. “Underhanded. Conniving.”

“We get your point,” Zelda spoke dryly.

“Nicholas is all of those things,” Sabrina confirmed. “And why are we talking about him anyway? I went to Dorian’s last night. Nick was there. I came home later than I would have liked – but still not as late as literally anyone else at the Academy – and somehow we’re talking about Nick at the breakfast table? We could just as easily be talking about Melvin. He was there too.”

“Melvin isn’t nearly as scandalous,” Ambrose supplied. Sabrina aimed another kick his way. He dodged it with a chuckle.

“I, for one, approve of you spending time with Nicholas,” Zelda lifted her smoking stick and the cigarette tip sprung to life. “As I said, he’s a formidable warlock. He could teach you a thing or two and there is, of course, nothing wrong with having a bit of _fun._ ”

Sabrina refrained from rolling her eyes at the overt suggestion.

“I dunno, Zelda,” Hilda fretted. “Sabrina has a good head on her shoulders and she’s a good judge of character. If she thinks she should maintain her distance from Nicholas…”

“Is she a good judge of character though?” Ambrose asked. “She did date Harvey. And then there are some of the causes she’s taken up… Ouch!” He glared at Sabrina as he rubbed his shin where her foot had once more landed, this time substantially harder.

“Enough you two,” Zelda scolded.

“He had that coming,” Sabrina defended.

“Even so,” Zelda nodded once in agreement, “Sabrina, I’m all for you having a bit of fun, but I best not hear about you falling asleep in class or anything of the sort.”

“If I fall asleep in class today it won’t be because I’m tired,” Sabrina quipped. “It will be because I couldn’t possibly be any more bored.” She remembered something. “Speaking of which!”

“Here we go,” Ambrose grumbled, recognizing Sabrina’s tone.

“We were having such a lovely breakfast,” Hilda echoed. Sabrina ignored them, eyes on Zelda.

“Aunt Zelda, did you know that Nicholas Scratch got moved out of most of his classes? He’s now doing independent study. It took him less than two weeks! I’ve been trying to get Blackwood to let me test into more challenging classes for months!”

“Despite what you may believe, you still have a lot to learn,” Zelda said in a tone that told Sabrina not to argue. “I’ll agree that you have a substantial amount of power. The problem is that you don’t know how to control it. Or rather, you don’t know how to control your temper.”

“Don’t know how to control my temper?” Sabrina sputtered indignantly. “I literally control my temper every single day at that Academy.”

“That’s what you call questioning authority and doing whatever you please?” Zelda asked.

“I question authority when it’s the right thing to do! You taught me that, Auntie!”

Ambrose felt the slight tremble of the kitchen table.

“Sabrina,” he warned in a low voice. Sabrina continued to ignore him.

“You have always said no Spellman woman is to back down from what she believes in.” The table shook harder. Sabrina eyed her aunt. “You certainly never back down so why is it such a big deal when I take a stand?”

Hilda had realized the shaking now.

“Sabrina, dear, let’s calm down,” she tried.

“It’s not that you take a stand.” Zelda sat back in her chair, eyes on Sabrina, one arm folded across her chest, the other holding up her smoking stick. “It’s how you choose to take your stand. Poor execution. Such as is on display right now.”

Sabrina realized then that she was causing the table to shake. She sat back in her chair, annoyed, and the table stopped shaking, but she recognized that she had just proved Zelda right. She had once again let her temper get the best of her.

“I’m going to school,” she declared. “Where I will learn absolutely nothing.”

She pushed back from the table and stomped out of the room without a backwards glance.

“That was unnecessarily dramatic,” Ambrose observed.

“This warlock,” Hilda said the moment she was gone, ignoring Ambrose’s commentary, “is he truly a dodgy character?”

“He’s a beautiful character,” Ambrose supplied. “He was here over the weekend.”

“To see Sabrina?” Hilda wondered.

“No,” Ambrose smirked. He refrained from ratting Sabrina out about Batibat. What the aunts didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them.

“We need no more details, Ambrose,” Zelda stated. “As for Nicholas, he does have a bit of a sordid history, but he is a powerful, talented warlock. Frankly, he knows more than some warlocks centuries older than him. It wouldn’t be the worst thing if Sabrina spent some time with him.”

“But if he’s going to cause her trouble or worse, heartache…”

“Oh Hilda, don’t be ridiculous,” Zelda snipped. “It’s not always about romance. If we’re lucky, he will draw her out, help her be less of a prude.”

“Here here!” Ambrose raised his orange juice in cheers.

“I meant a prude with her magic,” Zelda said with no patience. “Honestly, the pair of you.” She pushed away from the table. “Sabrina needs to come out of her magical shell. Nicholas antagonizes her. With any luck, he will bring it out of her. Whatever else happens between them is of no importance. Now, I’m off to the Academy myself.”

Zelda left the room, leaving Ambrose and Hilda at the table.

“What do you know about this Nicholas character?” Hilda inquired when they were alone.

“Not much,” Ambrose admitted. “I know he’s incredibly good looking, has a six-pack, and that he walked Sabrina home from Cee’s the other night.”

“I don’t know if I like the sound of this,” Hilda fretted. “Warlocks can be so charming, but their intentions are almost never good, not when they’re young like this Nicholas…”

“You just aren’t over the breakup with Harvey,” Ambrose said.

“He was such a dear, sweet boy,” Hilda acknowledged. “I really thought he and Sabrina stood a chance of being like Edward and Diana…”

“You’re insane if you thought the pair of them were a match made in Hell,” Ambrose stated. “I know Sabrina is reckless from time to time, but I ultimately trust her judgment with Nicholas. She won’t do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

“That’s the thing,” Hilda sighed. “Sabrina follows her heart with abandon.” She turned her teacup between her hands. “She’s going to get hurt if she gets involved with that warlock.”

“Probably,” Ambrose agreed. “But what is life without heartache?”

“That’s one of the sadder things you’ve said,” Hilda mused. She preferred to look at things from behind rose colored glasses.

“Perhaps,” Ambrose said as he, too, pushed away from the table. “But alas, I must be off spending my day preserving dead bodies in the basement. And that’s perhaps sadder.”

“I know it’s hard, being under house arrest like this…”

“It is what it is,” Ambrose said with an air of acceptance. “I will be downstairs if you need me.”

Hilda watched him go. She sighed into her morning tea. Her niece and nephew were the two greatest loves of her life. One of them couldn’t leave the house while the other ran through the world at large, breaking barriers and challenging authority but with no real direction in mind. She had rocked both of them, held them on her hip while she did chores, patched up their skinned knees, made them hot chocolate after a bad day. She wished she could protect them from the greater world.

But she couldn’t.

She had to let them make their mistakes and suffer the consequences.

She could only be there to make them hot chocolate to help heal their wounds when the dust settled.

* * *

Sabrina all but ran from the Academy. She had managed to avoid Nick all day, and for that she was grateful. She just had to get out of the Academy and she would be Nicholas Scratch free for an entire weekend, no need to worry about what she would say if he brought up their almost kiss the night before or else suggested they try for it again. She pushed through the door and out into the winter chill.

“Sabrina, hey.”

“Of course,” she muttered. She should have known her luck would run out.

Nick stood from where he had perched on the concrete railing. Sabrina didn’t think it was fair that he could still look as good as he did after a long day of classes or in his case, studying independently, clad in black from head to toe, his hair a bit more disheveled than the perfect coif he started his day off with. Not that she had noticed him chatting up a black haired witch she didn’t really know from across the entry when she arrived at the Academy that morning.

“Happy to see me,” he observed with a smile.

“I’m heading home,” she told him bluntly. “Where I’m going to take a nap before dinner.”

“Take a walk with me,” he proposed, undeterred by her shortness.

“Oh no,” Sabrina shook her head stubbornly. “I’m not falling for that, Scratch.”

“Falling for what?” he asked innocently.

“Whatever you’re trying to do right now,” Sabrina informed him. Deep down, she didn’t know why she was so resistant to Nick. Other than their almost kiss the night before – which she had admitted to herself she didn’t exactly _not_ want to happen in the moment – he had only ever been respectful, despite his insinuating comments.

“Trust me, Spellman, you want to take a walk with me,” he insisted.

“Telling me what I want now, are you?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. Nick sighed.

“Sabrina, I promise, I have no ulterior motives.” A lie. “Just – walk with me. We don’t need to go far and to be frank, if I did something to piss you off, you have plenty of power to render me useless.”

Sabrina considered that. It was true that she had plenty of power. But so did he. He could easily counter her. Even still, she felt compelled to follow him.

“Fine,” she agreed. “Lead the way.”

He nodded his head, indicating that she should follow him. They set out at leisurely place towards the woods.

“So, a nap?” he questioned.

“I was out a little too late last night,” she gave him an accusatory sort of look. He let it bounce off of him.

“I slept like a baby,” he told her.

He was lying. He had laid awake for a long time, plotting ways to get Sabrina Spellman to fall for him only to feel guilty for the bet he had made, then finding himself right back to plotting. It was a type of conflict he had never experienced before.

“Good for you,” Sabrina shot back.

“You’re cranky when you’re tired.”

“I haven’t had a great day,” she admitted. She left it there, but it really had been a rough day. She had left the breakfast table not just tired but annoyed as well and from then on, everything else seemed to grate against her the wrong way, particularly the mundane topics she was being taught.

“I have a feeling your day is about to get better,” Nick ventured. Sabrina gave him a curious look. He just winked and led her further into the woods, sticking to the path that would take her home.

“Enjoying all of your independent study time?” Sabrina asked with a note of bitterness.

“I am,” Nick confirmed. “But I do still come to chorus class.” He gave her a charming smile. She rolled her eyes, making him chuckle. “My independent study just may benefit you, Spellman.”

“Not as long as you’re in chorus class,” Sabrina quipped.

“Chorus is growing on me,” Nick countered. He looked over his shoulder and decided he was far enough away from the Academy. He stopped and turned to Sabrina. “I’ve got something for you…”

“What are you up to, Scratch?” Sabrina wondered. Nick just grinned and reached into the inside of his jacket. He produced a faded black book.

“For you.”

Sabrina took the book from him curiously. It was well worn, the leather cover supple. She flipped it open and gasped.

“My dad’s journal!”

“The first one,” Nick confirmed. “Like I said, my independent study benefits you.” He watched her handle the old journal with a delicate touch. She was absorbed in her own world, connecting with her deceased father as she flipped through his words and drawings. “I thought you should read them, get to know your dad and his work.”

Sabrina looked up at him. Her golden brown eyes shined with unshed tears. She blinked them away before they fell.

“Nick… How…”

“Now that I’ve gotten independent study, I have access to the sanctum,” he explained. “Cassius brings the journals out one at a time. He typically stands guard while you read them, but I bonded with the guy, figured out he’s got quite a passion for ancient texts. I asked him if he had any on some of the subject matter in that journal and he disappeared to find them. I did a quick replication spell and tucked it away in my coat. He was none the wiser.”

“So this is a copy?” Sabrina wondered.

“That’s the original,” Nick corrected. “The originals belong with the Spellman family, not locked up in a sanctum only accessible by a few. It might take some time, but I’ll get the rest too.”

Sabrina was speechless.

“I can’t… Nick…” She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She was stunned that he had done something so risky for her. “This means – everything. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Nick said, sensing her softening towards him. “Hopefully this turned your day around.”

“It really did,” she said with a soft smile. She turned the journal over in her hands. She already felt closer to Edward, just by handling something he had touched. “Have you read it?”

“I have,” Nick confessed. “This is his earliest work. It’s mostly of concepts and such versus concrete ideas, but I think his manifesto and the spells he created will come in future journals.”

“This means a lot, Nick,” she said once more. She smiled again, but this time it was a little mischievous. “Maybe I won’t let my aunt Zelda know I have it, however. As an Academy faculty member, she’s obligated to tell Blackwood about this transgression.”

“Blackwood doesn’t scare me,” Nick shook his head.

“My aunt Zelda might,” Sabrina chirped, drawing a chuckle out of him. “But then again, you don’t seem to have much fear of authority.”

“Neither do you,” Nick pointed out.

“I suppose that’s true,” Sabrina agreed. “But really, thank you.”

“No thanks needed.” He reached out and playfully tugged the bottom of her jacket. “We can talk about its contents after you read it. Our own illicit book club.”

That earned him a soft laugh out of Sabrina.

“We’ll see,” she hedged. “I should get home. I’ve got some reading to do.”

“What about that nap?” Nick asked.

“I’m suddenly wide awake,” Sabrina held the book up. Nick opened his mouth to say something, but the sound of a wolf’s howl echoed in the woods around him. “Was that…?” Sabrina looked at Nick with wide eyes.

“A wolf,” he finished. His eyes scanned the trees around them. “Yeah.”

“Wolves don’t usually come this close to town,” Sabrina said. “And definitely not during the day.”

“No,” Nick agreed, “they don’t.” His eyes still scanned the forest, searching. A chill went up his neck. He worked to appear calm for Sabrina’s benefit.

“Then why…” She saw his eyes widen. She turned to look over her shoulder. She gasped and stumbled backwards right into Nick. There, standing a few yards away, was the biggest wolf she had ever seen. “Nick…” she whispered, afraid to make a sudden move. “What do we do?”

“It’s okay,” he said in a low voice. “Don’t move.”

Nick moved with deliberate steps, first to the side and then in front of Sabrina. He started forward with equally measured steps.

“Nick…” Sabrina hissed. “What…”

He said nothing but waved his hand towards her to indicate she should stay back.

“Amalia.” Sabrina’s eyes widened once more. Nick _knew_ this wolf. She watched him reach a hand out. The wolf sniffed it. “What are you doing here?” The wolf snorted and pawed at the ground in agitation, but she pushed at Nick’s hand with her nose all the same. “That’s Sabrina.”

“She’s your familiar,” Sabrina recognized. Nick could communicate with the wolf the way she could communicate with Salem. Nick ignored her, all his focus on the wolf.

“It’s okay, Amalia. We like Sabrina.” Sabrina felt an odd warm sensation at that. He rubbed the wolf’s head. “Amalia,” he sighed at whatever she had said. “It’s not like that.”

Sabrina took a step forward, curiosity getting the better of her. Amalia bared her teeth over Nick’s shoulder. Sabrina stopped in her tracks.

“Sabrina, stay back,” Nick eyes never left the wolf, but his words were sharp. Sabrina stayed where she was. “How did you get here?” Nick asked Amalia. “You know you aren’t supposed to be here.” The wolf snorted angrily and pawed the ground again. Nick sighed. “Sabrina? Go home.”

Sabrina remained right where she was.

“I don’t think I should leave,” she said, eyes never leaving the massive wolf. Its golden eyes looked full of barely contained rage. Leaving Nick alone with it felt like a death sentence.

“I’ll be fine,” he said, his back still to her. “Go home. I’ll check in later.”

“Nick…”

“Sabrina, go _home._ ”

He said it in a way that told her he meant it. She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. She wanted to tell him to be careful, but she sensed it would anger the wolf. She backed away, keeping her eyes on them, until she was at a fair distance. Finally, she turned and walked away, keeping her steps normal even if part of her wanted to break into a run. She looked over her shoulder one more time before she disappeared around a bend. Nick was rubbing the wolf’s head.

Nick waited until Sabrina’s footsteps over the forest floor had faded away to speak again.

“Why are you here, Amalia?” he asked again.

 _To protect you,_ the wolf answered in his mind.

“I don’t need your protection anymore. I’m able to take care of myself now. You know that.”

_You’re my pup._

Nick’s heart squeezed at that.

“I’m a warlock,” he reminded her. “Not a pup. You can’t be here, Amalia. You’re not allowed at the Academy for one – no familiars are. But with your past, I can’t let you be around the other students, around me.”

_Other students? You mean the girl._

“Her too,” Nick nodded. Especially her.

_You care for her._

“I barely know her,” Nick countered. “It’s not like that.”

_It is. You just don’t see it yet._

“You’re jealous,” Nick observed. “Sabrina is just a friend.”

He wasn’t sure if ‘friend’ was the right word. She had certainly softened towards him just minutes earlier, but he still didn’t think she considered him a friend.

_You gave her a present._

“I gave her her father’s journal,” Nick corrected. “She should have it.”

_She will destroy us._

“There is no ‘us,’ Amalia,” Nick said sadly. He couldn’t figure out when his familiar had gone from a companion and confidant to possessive and overprotective, but she had, and she was borderline dangerous now. And it seemed she had her sights set on Sabrina. “You can’t be here.”

He took several sudden steps back.

Amalia recognized what he was doing. She snarled and lunged forward, but he was too fast for her. He stopped her quickly, throwing out a curse that froze her forward movement. She howled in anger, even though she couldn’t move. It echoed through the woods, causing birds to take to the sky, wildlife to scatter.

“I’m sorry,” Nick said apologetically. “I really am. But I can’t allow you to be here.”

His spell was intricate, but complete. She vanished with a roar.

When she was gone, Nick bent over, hands on his knees, to catch his breath after such powerful spell work. He let his head drop to his chest as a swarm of mixed emotions worked through him. He stayed like that for several minutes, processing what had just happened, before he righted himself. He exhaled, shook out his hands, pulled himself together, and disappeared.

He reappeared in front of the Spellman mortuary. He smoothed down his hair the best he could and approached the house, pushing down the feelings and memories that fought to get out of the box he had locked them in. He climbed the stairs and knocked politely.

A woman in an apron and heavy swipes of a blue-green eyeshadow answered the door a few moments later.

“Can I help you?” she asked kindly.

“Hi,” Nick ventured. He guessed this was Hilda Spellman. “Is Sabrina home?”

“She is,” the woman said slowly. Nick noted her sharp eye on him and the way she seemed to hesitate. “Can I ask who is calling upon her?”

“I’m Nicholas Scratch,” he introduced himself. He wondered if he was supposed to shake hands or whatever it was mortals did. Warlocks didn’t really do that. He stuck his hands in his pockets instead. “I go to the Academy with Sabrina.”

“Come in,” the woman said. “I’ll call her down.”

Nick sensed she was wary of him. He supposed that was fair. He was a warlock she didn’t know, asking to see her niece. He had a feeling she already knew plenty about him, however.

“Thank you.” He stepped into the entry.

“Sabrina!” the woman called out. “You have a visitor, love!” She turned back to Nick. “I’m Hilda, by the way. Sabrina’s aunt.”

“It’s nice to meet you Ms. Spellman,” Nick replied with a respectful nod. He heard steps above them and a few moments later, Sabrina appeared at the top of the stairs. She had changed out of her skirt and collared shirt from school and into a pair of jeans and a simple sweater. Nick thought she looked even more beautiful dressed down.

“Nick,” Sabrina said as though she had been expecting him. “Hi.”

“Hey,” he replied as he watched her walk down the stairs. “Got a few minutes? I have a couple of questions about that assignment we have this weekend.”

“Sure,” Sabrina didn’t miss a beat. “Happy to help.” She came to a stop in the entry. Hilda, she, and Nick formed a sort of triangle. Sabrina picked up on her aunt’s curiosity about the warlock she had heard mentioned over breakfast. “Nick, have you met my aunt?”

“I have,” Nick nodded. “You have a beautiful home, Ms. Spellman.”

“Thank you,” Hilda said, still eyeing the warlock. “It’s been in the family for centuries.”

Sabrina sniffed the air.

“Auntie? Is something burning?”

Hilda’s eyes grew big.

“My bread!”

She took off at a fast shuffle towards the kitchen. Sabrina turned to Nick.

“An assignment, huh?” she asked.

“I thought that might be better than ‘just wanted to check in after a vengeful wolf showed up while we were trading forbidden reading material in the woods,’” Nick answered, his hands still in his pockets. “You obviously made it home okay.”

“And you made it out of whatever happened back there unscathed,” Sabrina countered.

“Is there some place we can talk?” Nick asked. “Where we won’t be overheard?”

“The mortuary office.” Sabrina motioned for Nick to follow her. “Hilda will be busy in the kitchen for a while. She didn’t actually burn her bread. I did that. She wasn’t going to leave us alone unless I did something.” She smiled a bit at Nick. “I don’t think she trusts warlocks.”

“And yet she dates an incubus?”

“No one said it was logical,” Sabrina shrugged.

“Where’s Ambrose?” Nick wondered.

“In the morgue, I think.” Sabrina pushed through a door with a clouded glass pane. “Hilda said something about getting a body in this morning.”

Nick shut the door behind him. The office was well-appointed, comfortable. It was the kind of place loved ones planning a funeral would feel comfortable in. Sabrina lifted herself to sit on the desk and looked at Nick.

“So, your familiar is a wolf.”

“Werewolf, technically,” Nick answered. “A Scratch family specialty. I’ve had her since birth.”

“That’s unusual,” Sabrina observed. “Most of us don’t get our familiars until we’re approaching our Dark Baptism.

“My family did some unusual things,” Nick hedged. “Amalia… Is a little possessive.”

“A little?” Sabrina countered. “I’m pretty sure she wanted to rip me in half for breathing the same air as you.”

“She’s caused problems in the past,” Nick admitted. “She showed up at school, tried to harm the people I’ve been with. When I returned to school after my parents died, she broke in in the middle of the night and tried to kidnap me.”

“Familiars don’t act like that. They are meant to help. Mine – Salem, he’s a cat – is always there when I need him.”

“Amalia was there when I needed her the most.” The words came out of Nick without thinking. He didn’t talk about that time, ever. Yet something about Sabrina’s energy made him just – say it. “She took care of me after my parents died, treated me like her own pup.” Nick pursed his lips at his choice of words. “She still thinks of me as her pup.”

“Wait, she took care of you?” Sabrina questioned. “What does that mean?”

“Just that,” Nick said. “After my parents died, she kept me alive. She fed me, sheltered me. Looking back, I think she hid me from the people that came looking for me to meet her own twisted needs.”

“Who came looking for you?” Sabrina wondered.

“Council members from our coven.” Nick shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Standard practice when an underage witch or warlock is orphaned. Council takes them and tries to find a next of kin. If there are none, they become a ward.”

Sabrina didn’t have to ask to know Nick had no next of kin. He had already told her he was a ward of the council. Her heart broke for him. She had a very different experience when her parents died. They sent her to her aunts. There was never – to her knowledge – a council involved.

“But you eventually ended up as a ward…,” she ventured.

“Yeah, I did,” Nick didn’t offer her anymore. He knew there were holes in the story he was telling, but he just didn’t talk about his past. He had already said far more than ever did. “Anyway, Amalia struggles with letting me go. I’ve banished her a few times now. This time I sent her to the Angolan Forest. She’s far away. With luck, she will meet up with a pack of wolves and try to integrate with them.”

“She kind of stands out,” Sabrina said. “She’s huge.”

“She’s not small,” Nick agreed. He looked at her with utter sincerity. “Sabrina, I’m sorry. I had no way of knowing she was here, that she would show up like that.”

“I don’t understand,” Sabrina said frankly. “She’s your familiar and yet you talk like she’s a threat. Aren’t they supposed to be protective? To be your companion? Salem has always been there when I needed him. Whether I knew I needed him or not.”

She couldn’t reconcile that Nick’s familiar was different than hers, than Zelda’s Vinegar Tom or Hilda’s spiders, all of which were faithful, loyal companions who took their jobs and their charges seriously. Nick spoke of Amalia as though she were dangerous.

“Amalia was jealous of you,” Nick explained. “Honestly Sabrina? She wanted to hurt you.”

“Me?” Sabrina asked. “Why?”

“Because she could sense…” Nick trailed off. This was an opening. He could spin a tale about their connection, lead Sabrina down the path he needed her to go down to win the bet. But it would be a little obvious, a little forced. She probably wouldn’t buy it anyway. He changed tactics. “I’m attracted to you.” The truth, bet or not. “She felt that and it made her jealous.”

“She has nothing to be jealous of,” Sabrina said plainly.

“Depends on who you ask, I guess.” That earned him a hint of a grin. “Have you had a chance to read any of the journal?”

“Just the first few pages,” Sabrina said. “I was interrupted.”

“I wanted to check on you,” he said. “Amalia is – a lot.”

“I’m okay,” she assured him. She peered at him curiously. He looked shaken – and like he was trying to hide it. “How about you?”

“I’m fine,” he said a little too quickly for it to be entirely true. He wasn’t used to people asking about his well-being. “I should get going. Contrary to popular belief, I do have some homework to do.”

“Nicholas Scratch, doing homework on a Friday night?” Sabrina questioned. “When he could put it off until Sunday and indulge in all things Dorian has to offer tonight and tomorrow?”

“I’m planning to lay low tonight,” he said honestly.

In that moment, Sabrina saw something more in Nick. Buried underneath the suave persona he put forth was someone with a past. Not a past related to his misdeeds and loose ways, but a past that held heartache, pain. Another brick fell away from the wall she had immediately constructed between them. She thought it might be dangerously close to being low enough to step over if she wasn’t careful.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked, her concern evident.

“I’m fine,” Nick assured her. He started edging towards the door. It felt like Sabrina could see right through him, see the parts of him, or at least their edges, that he tried desperately to keep hidden from everyone else. It unnerved him and he wasn’t easily shaken. He found he needed some space from it, from her. “It’s just been a long week.” He forced an easy smile. “I’ll be at Dorian’s tomorrow, though. If you find yourself bored…”

“I think I’ll stick close to home,” she quipped. She slid off the desk and walked Nick to the door. She bid him farewell and found herself peeking through the curtain after she shut the door. She looked just in time to see him disappear. She wondered if he ever actually walked anywhere. Even though everything in her wanted to go back upstairs and resume reading her father’s journal, it was nearly dinnertime. She wandered into the kitchen. “Need any help, Aunt Hilda?”

“Oh, hello dear,” Hilda replied from her place at the stove. “Nicholas gone?”

“He’s gone,” Sabrina confirmed.

“And did he get what he came for?” she continued.

“Homework help?” Sabrina stated pointedly. “Yes, he did.”

“Good,” Hilda nodded. “Mind setting the table, dear? Just the three of us tonight. Zelda is dining at the Academy.” Sabrina didn’t bother to ask why. She had a feeling ‘why’ would just make her mad. “Why did Nicholas come to you for questions?” Hilda wondered. “I’m sure he could have found answers from someone at the Academy, saved himself a trip.”

Sabrina wasn’t falling for her aunt’s meddling as she summoned plates out of the cabinet.

“It’s a partner project,” she lied easily. It amazed her how easily they came to her these days. “We’re paired together. We split the work in half. I’ll do my part, he will do his, and then we will combine them to turn in.”

“You won’t be spending a lot of one-on-one time with him then?”

“You don’t like him, do you?” Sabrina countered as she floated the dinnerware across the kitchen.

“I don’t know the boy,” Hilda said diplomatically. “He was quite polite when he came to the door…”

“But?” Sabrina prompted. Hilda sighed.

“Well he’s a warlock, isn’t it?” she asked. “They’re all the same, the lot of them – they’re charming and smooth and then they break your heart.”

“You had your heart broken, didn’t you?” Sabrina guessed.

“That’s neither here nor there,” Hilda dismissed, and Sabrina knew she had guessed right. She deemed her stew finished and turned off the stove. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt, is all.”

“I’m not planning on getting involved with Nick,” Sabrina assured her aunt. “I’m too smart for his warlock charms.”

“That’s my girl,” Hilda said with a fond smile. “Fetch Ambrose? Dinner will be on the table by the time he’s cleaned up.”

Sabrina left the kitchen to call down to the morgue for her cousin, but she couldn’t help but think about Nicholas Scratch. She was smart enough not to fall for his charms. But she was curious enough to wonder what was going on behind his smooth, confident demeanor.

And as she always told Salem when he tried to intervene on one of her crusades, curiosity killed the cat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Curiosity did, indeed, kill the cat. Sabrina is seeing a little more of Nick and she might maybe kinda sorta be interested in that side of him. And Nick didn't seem so comfortable with someone inquiring about his well-being, did he? As for Amalia... Do we think she's gone for good or nah?
> 
> I do love a good Spellman breakfast though. 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading and showing so much love for this story! I'm still blown away by every comment. <3 Let me know how you felt about this one!


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How about a little "book club" action?

Sabrina slipped through the library as quiet as a mouse. She peeked down aisles and zigzagged through stacks, searching. She found Nick lounging in a comfortable looking armchair. He had a book in his hand and a notebook open, pen poised to take notes.

“Meet me in the clearing after school.”

He startled at her sudden appearance.

“Sabrina, hi,” he greeted. “I didn’t hear you coming.”

“I’m light on my feet,” she quipped. “Clearing, after school.”

She turned on her heel, intending to walk away.

“Not so fast, Spellman.”

She rolled her eyes and turned back to him.

“You can’t make it easy, can you, Scratch?”

“I think I have a right to know why I’m supposed to meet you in a clearing in the woods,” he countered. “It could be a trap.” Sabrina’s eyes narrowed at how he used her words from the night they banished Batibat against her. He grinned at her expression. “I’m just keeping my safety in mind.”

“Illicit book club,” Sabrina told him. “That’s why.”

“You’ve finished it?”

“I read it twice this weekend,” Sabrina confessed. “I’ve got a lot of thoughts.”

“I expected you would.” Nick stacked his books and got to his feet. “Sure, Spellman, I’ll meet you in the woods.”

“So kind of you,” Sabrina stated. They fell into step together, neither really recognizing they had started to move as one.

“May I make a suggestion?” Nick asked. “Let’s change the meeting location. How about that diner with the horror books? I haven’t tried one of his milkshakes yet.”

“No can do,” Sabrina shook her head. “My friends think I’m away at boarding school, remember? I can’t just go to Cee’s. It’s the place everyone hangs out after school. Even if my friends aren’t there, someone will mention seeing me, it will get back to them, and they will want to know why I didn’t let them know I was in town.”

“Fair enough,” Nick agreed. “The clearing it is.”

“Where are you going anyway?” Sabrina wondered. She knew he had independent study all afternoon – she had overheard him telling Melvin as much when they were in chorus and she was dutifully ignoring his not so covert glances that morning.

They stopped just outside of the library.

“To the sanctum,” he answered. “We need more reading material for our book club.”

Sabrina beamed and he felt an odd sort of pride that he had managed to bring that big of a smile out of her. He opened his mouth to reply, but another voice broke in before he could.

“Well, isn’t this cute.”

Prudence stood before them, her eyes dancing with what Sabrina recognized as mischief.

“Scratch and Spellman,” she continued. “Your names do go quite well together.”

“I’m going to class,” Sabrina stated, not willing to take Prudence’s bait. She didn’t wait for a reply. She walked away, aware of Nick’s eyes on her.

“You’re playing dirty,” Nick said to Prudence once Sabrina was out of earshot. “I was making progress before you rudely interrupted.”

“Your magic is worth a lot to me,” Prudence cooed. “Where were you this weekend, by the way? My sisters and I were hoping to find you at Dorian’s.” Her words were full of suggestion.

“I decided my time was better spent here.”

His encounter with Amalia had shaken him more than he wanted to admit to himself, let alone Prudence. He had already told Sabrina more than he wanted to. It was rare that he found himself tucking into books and his own space to find comfort. His usual go-tos were warm bodies, booze, and perhaps a recreational drug or two. But this past weekend, a retreat into ancient texts and the solace of his room had called his name. He had only left his hideaway for fresh reading material and food.

“You’ll never get her, Nicky,” Prudence reminded him. “She’s too good for you.”

She breezed past Nick and into the library. Nick sighed and shook his head.

Prudence was right.

Sabrina Spellman was too good for him.

She wasn’t the first witch or warlock that was.

But, he noted as he started up the first of a few flights of stairs to the sanctum, this was the first time that fact bothered him just a little.

* * *

Sabrina sat on the altar, swinging her legs and allowing her annoyance to simmer. It was only after she got to the clearing that she realized she had expected Nick to be waiting for her outside of the Academy to walk together, even though she had said ‘meet me in the clearing.’ And now that she had sat there for a quarter of an hour with no sign of the warlock, she was beginning to believe she had been stood up.

He appeared out of nowhere.

“Oh my Satan!” she cried, her hand flying to her chest in surprise. “What the Heaven, Scratch?”

“A little jumpy, Spellman?” he asked.

“Do you ever walk anywhere?” Sabrina countered.

“Rarely,” he confirmed.

“You’re late.”

He held up his hands. There was a Styrofoam cup in each one.

“I thought we needed refreshments.”

Sabrina faltered.

“Is that…”

“Milkshakes from Cee’s?” Nick finished. “Yes, Spellman, it is.” He held one out to her. She took it with a skeptical look. “Cee said mint chocolate chip was your favorite, so if your order is wrong, blame him.” He hopped up on the altar next to her.

“You went to Cee’s and got us milkshakes?” she clarified.

“I told you, I wanted to try one,” Nick said as though it were no big deal. He had, of course, known exactly what he was doing. “I couldn’t show up with one for me but none for you, could I?”

“Thank you,” Sabrina was genuinely touched by the gesture. “Cee’s right. Mint chocolate chip is my favorite.”

“Good,” Nick nodded. He produced two straws from the inside of his jacket and passed one to her. He tore away the paper, struck the straw in, and took a tentative sip of his milkshake. “Wow.” He took another sip. “That’s really good.”

“What kind did you get?” Sabrina inquired.

“Peanut butter,” Nick answered. “It’s not bad for my first milkshake.”

“Your first milkshake from Dr. Cerberus is unforgettable,” Sabrina agreed.

“No, it’s my first milkshake, ever,” Nick clarified. “I’ve never had one before.” Sabrina’s jaw dropped.

“You’ve never had a milkshake before?”

“You witnessed me take my milkshake virginity,” Nick affirmed. Sabrina made a face at his comparison.

“I can’t believe you have never had a milkshake. That’s insane.”

“Most warlocks don’t venture to the local diner,” he reminded her.

“Want another first?” she asked. Nick smirked.

“You finally going to kiss me, Spellman?” She narrowed her eyes.

“No!” she exclaimed. “Satan, you’re incorrigible…”

“Relax,” Nick chuckled. He found he enjoyed ruffling her feathers. “I’m kidding.”

“You better be,” Sabrina grumbled as she reached into her bag. “Otherwise, I won’t share these with you.” She produced a baggie of cookies. “Chocolate chip walnut. One of Hilda’s many specialties.”

“Sure you’re not going to try to poison me?” Nick asked as he reached into the bag she offered.

“I didn’t question your milkshakes, did you?”

Nick chuckled again. He took a bit bite of the cookie and groaned.

“Hilda’s not happy with Cee, is she?” he asked. “Because if she’s not, I’ll make an honest woman out of her so long as she bakes like this every day.” Sabrina laughed heartily.

“Sorry, Scratch, but Hilda is very spoken for.”

“Just my luck.”

Sabrina laughed again. It wasn’t so bad, being with Nick like this. So long as he kept his hands to himself and his comments mostly PG.

“This is like, the best worst after school snack ever,” she said between bites of cookie and sips of milkshake. “So much sugar.”

“We’re also sitting on a satanic altar,” Nick pointed out. “Suffices to say we’re really pushing our limits.”

“Kinda like my dad,” she hedged, bringing them around to the reason for their illicit book club in the first place. “He really was a groundbreaker, wasn’t he?”

“He was,” Nick confirmed. “It was fascinating, reading about his earliest ideas, seeing how some of his more radical ideas took root.”

“That drawing of his acheron would have made things a lot easier when I was trying to solve it.”

“That really existed?” Nick asked curiously.

“I told you I solved it,” Sabrina reminded him. “It’s how Batibat got loose the first time.”

“I thought it was just a blueprint,” Nick said. “An idea he had for the strongest acheron aside from the human body. I didn’t realize when you said you solved his acheron you meant _that_ acheron.”

“The human body can be used as an acheron?” Sabrina wondered.

“It’s the strongest binding there is. The human body could, theoretically, hold Satan himself. Not that anyone would want to experience that.” The mere idea of someone being possessed by Satan made a chill run through Sabrina. “Your father’s plans for that acheron were complicated,” Nick continued. “Solving it couldn’t have been easy.”

“Blackwood tried for years,” Sabrina shared. “Other warlocks tried too. It’s like looking into a kaleidoscope. It’s meant to drive someone insane before they can solve it. Blackwood gave it to me to solve as a way to prove I was ready to take the aptitude test to move into more advanced classes. I solved it in two days.”

Nick let out a low whistle.

“Impressive, Spellman.”

“It was my dad’s,” she shrugged. “I guess I just think like him.” She smirked. “It was one of my better days, walking into Blackwood’s office and dumping that thing on his desk. He had no choice but to let me take the test and I breezed through it. Not that I ended up in classes much more challenging than what I was already in.”

“Why did Blackwood have it in the first place?” Nick wondered. “If it belonged to your father, shouldn’t it have been in the Spellman family’s possession?”

“Blackwood has a lot of my father’s things. The acheron, his journals, who knows what else. I assume he’s afraid the wrong person might get their hands on it. Blackwood isn’t very secure in his position despite the foot he puts forth. I can’t prove it, but I think he’s up to something.”

“Like what?” Nick wondered.

“I don’t know,” Sabrina said honestly. “It’s just a feeling I get. He’s so intent on stamping down witches and elevating warlocks. No offense.”

“None taken,” Nick replied. “Warlocks aren’t known for being progressive on the whole, but I will agree that Blackwood seems especially sexist.”

Sabrina flipped through the journal, considering what she read in its pages.

“Would it be so bad?” she wondered. “Living life the way my father envisioned it? Free and open among mortals, interacting with them, not hiding from them, helping them.”

“It would be ideal.” gave him a curious look. She hadn’t expected him to agree – most magical beings didn’t. “But as they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day. It would take decades – maybe even centuries – to transform not only the magic community’s way of thinking, but mortal ways as well. People tend to be afraid of what they don’t understand, and when they are afraid, they act out of a place of fear.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Sabrina sighed. Nick watched as her thumb rubbed back and forth over the leather in her hand.

“It’s hard for you, isn’t it?” he guessed. “Toeing the line between mortal and witch?”

“My best friends are mortals,” Sabrina reminded him. “I have no regrets about choosing my witch nature, but my mom was a mortal. That’s a part of me, no matter how much power I have.” She bumped her heel against the altar, thinking. “It’s hard to be right here in Greendale, knowing my friends are just down the road and not being able to see them as often as I would like, not being able to go to the places I like to go. Soon enough, I will reach a point in which I won’t be able to see them at all. They will be aging and I won’t. I won’t be able to explain that away.”

“That’s why witches and warlocks don’t form relationships with mortals,” he pointed out gently. “It’s just as much to preserve our secret as it is to keep us from getting attached.”

“I thought warlocks in particular don’t form attachments,” she challenged.

Nick decided to be honest.

“Not typically. But not every warlock is like that. My dad wasn’t. He was with my mom for centuries.” He avoided eye contact, finding he couldn’t quite look at her as he prepared to admit something else. “I’ve always wondered what that would be like, to give yourself to someone so completely. To know that you had that bond to lean on.”

“And yet you seem to operate alone,” Sabrina observed. It was another puzzle piece to the warlock she thought was far more complicated than he let on.

“I guess I do,” Nick nodded with a faraway tilt to his tone.

“I told Harvey I’m a witch,” Sabrina found herself confessing. Nick gave her a sharp look. “He freaked out. So, I modified his memory and he has no clue once more.” She sat the remaining cookies aside, no longer hungry. “It was the moment I knew our relationship wouldn’t be like my mom and dad’s.”

Nick sensed she still held onto some hurt from the breakup.

“If he couldn’t accept that part of you, he wasn’t the guy for you, was he?” he ventured. “I don’t know much at all about love, but it seems to me if someone really loves another, they accept the good and the bad. Or in your case, the different.”

His words warmed her. Most of the time, the words that came out of Nick’s mouth seemed disingenuous or at least carried a double meaning. But right now, in this moment, she had no doubt he was utterly sincere.

“I suppose so.” She knew he was right. She flipped through the journal once more. Another thought occurred to her. “Nick?”

“Spellman?”

“Why are you so curious about my father?”

Nick considered her. He had tried not to come across as too curious about Edward Spellman, but it seemed he didn’t do a very good job of it.

“Edward Spellman is infamous,” he said. “He had great power, and he used it for great things, with intentions of using it for even greater things.” He played with the straw of his milkshake. “I know I have more power than most warlocks. I don’t want it to go to waste. I just don’t know what to do with it. So, I study the great warlocks and try to learn from them.”

Again, Sabrina was taken aback.

“You want to be great,” she recognized.

“I don’t want to waste my talent,” he corrected. “There’s a difference.”

“You know you don’t have to figure it out right now, right?” she asked. “You’re only seventeen. You have centuries to figure it out.”

“Your father spent centuries figuring it out,” he pointed out. “He still had centuries of work ahead of him when he passed.”

Sabrina just looked at him, absorbing his words.

“You’re a complicated warlock,” she finally said.

“That’s an apt observation,” Nick agreed. It was one of the more true things people had said about him.

Sabrina opened her mouth to reply, but her attention was drawn by movement at the edge of the woods across the clearing. She raised an eyebrow as she watched the grass begin to grow into a mound. It reminded her a bit of one of Hilda’s Jell-O molds as it rose from the ground.

“Nick?” She tilted her head. “What’s that?”

Nick looked in the direction Sabrina indicated. He watched as a mound grew out of the ground. It moved like the thick grass covering it was a casing and whatever was in it was fighting to get out.

“I have no idea.” He hopped off the altar, his eyes never leaving it. “But we probably don’t want to find out.”

Sabrina followed his lead.

“What do we do?” she asked.

“We need to…”

Whatever they needed to do was left unsaid. The thing underneath the ground began to race towards them, grass and dirt flying in its wake. It looked like a very large mole heading straight for them.

“Run!” Nick cried out.

Instinctively, he pushed Sabrina ahead of him, putting himself between her and whatever was trying to get out of the ground. She stumbled several steps before she regained her footing and ran as fast as she could in the direction of the mortuary. She was aware of Nick behind her.

Until he wasn’t.

“Sabrina!”

Sabrina spun to see long tentacles emerging from the ground. One had caught Nick by his ankle and was dragging him towards where a face was beginning to appear from the dirt.

“Nick!”

She was fast with her spell, slicing the beast’s tentacle wrapped around Nick. He scrambled to his feet. His ankle burned fiercely, but there was nothing he could do about it in the moment. The creature had fully emerged now and needed his full attention. It had the upper body of an ugly woman, the lower body of an octopus. Its tentacles flailed wildly. Now that it was above ground, its movements had slowed.

“What is this thing?” Sabrina called as it continued to rise from the ground.

“A sea demon,” Nick called back. “Fire will hold it back!”

Sabrina wasted no time in conjuring a ring of fire. Nick did the same. They moved in unison towards one another, both sensing they would be stronger together. When he was close enough, he grabbed Sabrina’s hand. Their line of fire grew wider, higher, and stronger.

“Can you banish it?” Sabrina asked urgently.

“There’s no need to,” Nick shook his head. “She can’t survive long above ground.” He nodded at where the demon was already starting to weaken. “Just keep the fire going.”

Hands held tight to strengthen their power, they watched as the half-woman, half-octopus faded back into the ground. Her last flailing tentacle reached out and grabbed the piece Sabrina had sliced off with her spell before it, too, sunk out of sight. When it was gone, the silence was eerie. The birds had stopped chirping, the trees no longer rustled. Sabrina released Nick’s hand and the flames around them flickered and disappeared now that the threat was over.

“What the Heaven just happened?” Sabrina breathed.

“I don’t know,” Nick shook his head, his mind racing. “Someone summoned it. But who?”

“Prudence,” Sabrina said instantly. “One of the other Weird Sisters. Heaven, Blackwood or any one of his cronies would do something like this.” Nick said nothing. He wouldn’t put it past Prudence Night to summon a demon to interrupt his time with Sabrina. Or, more likely, to find someone to do it for her. But that demon had required a certain skill level, and he wasn’t sure there were many at the Academy capable of conjuring it.

“Let’s get you home,” he said in response. He took a step towards her. “Ah!” Burning pain seared through him.

“Your ankle,” Sabrina realized.

“It will be fine,” Nick tried. He took another step that told Sabrina otherwise.

“You need to see my aunt Hilda,” she decided. “She’s a healer.”

“No, it’s fine,” Nick shook his head. “I’ll clean it up when I get back to the Academy.” The pain was so intense now that the danger had passed and his adrenaline waned that he could no longer ignore the creature’s venom working slowly up his leg. He closed his eyes to breathe through a wave of pain. When he opened them, he was met with Sabrina’s concerned orbs.

“You can’t walk on that, Nick, not all the way to the mortuary.” She pursed her lips for a moment, thinking. “Think you can concentrate enough to teleport us?”

“How about you do it?” Nick countered in a moment of vulnerability. “Honestly, Sabrina? It hurts bad enough to mess with my concentration. I could have us halfway across the globe if I tried it right now.”

“I don’t know how…”

“It’s easy enough. Visualize where you want to go. Get a really clear image of it. Then say the incantation – Lanuae magicae.”

Sabrina hesitated.

“I can try…”

“You can do it,” Nick said with confidence. “Take my hand.” He extended it towards her. She took it, even if she wasn’t sure she was going to actually attempt the spell. “Close your eyes.” She did as she was instructed. “Visualize the mortuary. See as much detail as you can.” Sabrina conjured up an image of the mortuary. It was so vivid she could practically smell Hilda’s gardens. “When you’re ready, say the incantation.”

Sabrina took a big breath.

“Lanuae magicae.”

She felt that same sucking sensation as she had when Nick had teleported them the night they banished Batibat. She was shocked when they reappeared at the mortuary in exactly the same spot she had envisioned it from.

“I did it!” she exclaimed.

“Pretty damned accurately too,” Nick approved. “People usually end up at least a little off from their destination the first few times.”

“Don’t be too impressed,” Sabrina said wryly. “You still have to walk up all of those stairs. No one, not even a Spellman, can teleport inside the fence – Spellman protection spells. This is as close as I could get us.” She chanced a look at his ankle It was twice the size it should have been, his jeans burned away from where the tentacle had wrapped around him. The redness had spread upward. It looked angry and painful. “Think you can manage it?”

“I’ll be fine,” Nick said with a determined nod of his head, still trying to hide just how bad it hurt.

It was slow going. He gritted his teeth as he walked up the stairs one at a time. He swore his ankle hurt more with every step. Sabrina stayed right there, hand hovering, Nick assumed to steady him if he showed any sign of bobbling. Even in his pain, he considered faking a stumble, just to see if she would catch him.

“Aunt Hilda!” she called when they entered the house. “Ambrose!”

“You’re pretty loud for a small witch,” Nick observed. He hissed as another shot of pain jolted threw him.

“It’s a big house. I have to be loud to be heard.” She glanced around for any sign of her aunt or cousin. “Hilda! Ambrose!”

“Are you trying to wake the dead?” Ambrose appeared from the door that led down to the mortuary. He was still wearing his apron, goggles pushed up on his forehead. There was a smear that looked a lot like blood across his chest. “Ah, Nicholas is here too.”

“Where’s Hilda?” Sabrina requested, not giving Nick a chance to greet Ambrose. “We were attacked in the woods…”

“Attacked?” Ambrose questioned with a note of urgency.

“…and Nick got burned or stung or something by the thing’s tentacle….”

“What tentacle?” Ambrose interjected. “What happened?”

“…I need Hilda to look at his ankle. She will know what to do.”

Sabrina stood with expectant hands on her hips.

“Wait… The pair of you,” Ambrose pointed to first Nick, then Sabrina, “were in the woods together. A demon attacked and Nicholas was stung?”

“That’s the cliff note version,” Nick grunted out.

“You’re in a lot of pain,” Sabrina recognized. “Ambrose, can you help him?”

“I can, but Hilda would be better…”

“Sabrina? Is that you?” Hilda came through the back of the house wearing her gardening apron indicating she had been in her greenhouse. “Ah, Nicholas, hello again.”

“Auntie, Nick…”

“Your ankle!” Hilda cut Sabrina off as she bustled forward having spied it before Sabrina could fill her in. “What on earth happened?”

“Sea demon,” Nick managed. The pain was blinding now as it continued to move up his leg. He was too proud to ask for help, but his pride was rapidly deteriorating.

“What?” Hilda looked confused. She shook her head. “Later. Let’s get you fixed up. Sabrina, take Nicholas to the kitchen. I’m going to nip to my botanical room for supplies. Be right there.”

She left, expecting Sabrina to follow her instructions.

“Come on, Nick.” Sabrina didn’t think twice as she slid her arm around his waist. He put his around her shoulders and leaned on her as she led him to the kitchen.

“I’m going to clean up, and then I want to know about this sea demon,” Ambrose said. Sabrina ignored him, focusing on Nick.

“How are you doing?” she asked as she helped him to a kitchen chair.

“It’s fine…”

“Nick,” Sabrina cut him off with a gentleness he wasn’t expecting. “You’re not fine. Your ankle is the size of a softball and the swelling is spreading up your leg.”

“What’s a softball?” he countered. Sabrina smiled.

“Never mind that,” she shook her head. “You’re in a lot of pain, aren’t you?”

“It doesn’t feel great,” he admitted.

“Hilda will take care of it,” Sabrina assured him. “I don’t know anyone who can heal more completely than her.” She moved away and Nick missed her presence. He watched as she took a glass out of a cabinet and filled it with water. “Here.” She offered him it to him. “Drink this.”

“Thank you,” he said with a grateful nod. He took a sip of the cool water. “Are you okay? I know I asked earlier, but I just wanted to be sure…”

“I’m fine,” Sabrina assured him. “Confused about what happened, but okay.”

“Same,” Nick agreed. He didn’t have time to share his theories, however. Hilda bustled through the door, her arms loaded with plants, tubes, and jars. Sabrina rushed to help her.

“Prop that ankle up here,” Hilda directed. She spun a chair so Nick could place is foot on it. “Ah, yes, just what I thought. You’ve got some venom in there. No worries. I’ll have you right as rain in no time. It just might not be very pleasant for a few minutes.”

“It never is,” Nick sighed.

Hilda went to work. She had been telling the truth when she said it wouldn’t be pleasant. He hissed and had to look away when she used a fine scapple to make a shallow cut into his swollen ankle. Green puss seeped out.

“Hang in there,” Sabrina’s soft voice encouraged. She caught his hand in hers and held it tight. “You’re going to be okay.”

Nick was overwhelmed, not by the pain of treatment, even though that wasn’t pleasant, but how _kind_ everyone was being. Hilda chirped words of comfort as she worked, her touch delicate and, dared he think it, downright motherly. Sabrina held his hand in hers, her thumb working soothing circles along the back of it. She, too, offered him words of comfort. Even Ambrose, who returned in the midst of Hilda’s work, offered his support. It was different than anything he had ever known.

“There,” Hilda said some minutes later, once she had coated the incision she made with a thick pink paste that soothed away both the burn from the sting and the pain her drain caused. “Venom is all gone, swelling has gone down quite a bit. How’s the pain?”

“Better,” Nick nodded. “Still a little sore, but much better than it was.”

“You’ll be a bit tender for a day or so,” Hilda told him. “But you’ll be fine. Let’s put an ice pack on this, shall we? Ambrose? Fetch one from the freezer.”

“Yes, Auntie.” Ambrose moved without debate.

“Now, the pair of you,” Hilda fixed Nick and Sabrina with a serious expression. Sabrina realized she was still holding Nick’s hand and dropped it. Nick missed the contact. “Care to explain how you happened across a sea demon in the first place?”

“We were in the clearing,” Sabrina explained. She took the ice pack from Ambrose and artfully draped it over Nick’s ankle before she took a seat. “We were just sitting there, minding our own business, when the ground sort of bubbled up.”

“We started to run, but it chased us, erupted from the ground,” Nick added. “It was a cecaelia, half-woman, half octopus. It used one of its tentacles to grab my ankle. Sabrina severed it, but it tried to attack.”

“Tried?” Ambrose questioned.

“It’s a water creature,” Nick reminded them.

“It can’t survive on land,” Ambrose understood.

“We conjured fire to hold it back,” Sabrina told them. “And then it just started to – fade.”

“Because it can’t survive on land,” Nick said again. “Whoever sent that thing didn’t necessarily want to hurt us, but they did want to scare us.”

“Well it worked,” Sabrina stated. Nick shook his head.

“You weren’t scared,” he said. “You were fearless.”

Ambrose and Hilda exchanged glances. It was clear that there was something between Sabrina and Nick. Ambrose supported it. Hilda worried about it.

“You were in trouble,” Sabrina dismissed. “I wasn’t going to let that thing eat you or whatever it was going to do.”

“Who sent it though?” Ambrose wondered. “If the pair of you didn’t conjure it…” he gave Sabrina a sharp look. “You didn’t conjure it, did you?”

“No,” Sabrina with annoyance. “Always thinking the worst…”

“Your track record of doing things you’re not supposed to is long,” he countered.

“Why were the pair of you in the clearing in the first place?” Hilda asked before Ambrose and Sabrina could launch into one of their useless squabbles. Sabrina and Nick exchanged a look. Nick gave her a single nod of her head to let her know it was her choice as to what she told them. She reached into her bag and produced the journal.

“Nick got this for me.”

Ambrose grabbed for it.

“This is one of Uncle Edward’s journals!” He opened the cover. “The first one! How did you get this?”

“With all due respect, your aunt is Zelda Spellman,” Nick answered. “I’d rather keep the hows of it out of this conversation.”

Ambrose chuckled.

“No wonder you and Sabrina are getting along,” he observed.

“Anyway,” Sabrina said pointedly. “We were discussing its contents and that – thing – appeared.”

“I wonder if it was connected?” Hilda pondered.

“I suppose it could be,” Nick hedged. “Let’s not rule it out.”

“Do you think it has anything to do with…” Sabrina cut Ambrose a sharp look. “The waning mood?” he finished lamely, remembering at Sabrina’s glare that their aunts didn’t know about Batibat.

“The waning moon?” Hilda repeated skeptically.

“Since we were throwing out idea,” Ambrose waved a hand dismissively.

“Okay,” Hilda replied. “We’re likely not going to figure it out sitting here, are we? And we do need to let Zelda know.” She cut her eye at Nick. “At least about the sea demon.”

“Where is Zelda anyway?” Sabrina asked.

“She had a checkup with Lady Blackwood,” Hilda answered. “She will be home later. She said for us to have dinner without her. Which, Nicholas, you will, of course, be joining us.”

“Oh, no, I don’t want to impose,” Nick said quickly. “You have already done enough for me…”

“Nonsense,” Hilda cut him off. “You’re eating with us.”

“Don’t try to fight it,” Ambrose advised. “When Hilda says you’re eating here, you’re eating here.”

“Note she didn’t ask,” Sabrina added.

Hilda was already taking out pots and pans. Nick nodded his agreeance, even if he felt – weird – about it. He could only just recall fuzzy memories of the last time he had sat down to a proper dinner around a table.

The rest of the evening was uneventful. Ambrose, Sabrina, and Nick moved to the living room where Sabrina made Nick put the ice back on his ankle and Ambrose poured him a bourbon. They sat around debating on who had summoned the demon and if it was connected to the odd breeze Sabrina and Nick had felt in the same clearing a few nights earlier until Hilda called them to the table, nowhere closer to answers than they had been when Sabrina and Nick arrived at the mortuary.

Dinner with the Spellmans, Nick learned, was an event. Sabrina and Ambrose squabbled good naturedly. Hilda kept heaping food on his plate until he had to tell her he could not possibly eat another bite. And yet he had managed it when she produced a chocolate chip poundcake for dessert. He tried to help clean up when dinner was over, but Hilda had shooed him off into a chair with another round of ice on his ankle. He had ended up floating the dishes from the table to the sink where Ambrose and Sabrina washed and dried to make himself feel useful. It was late in the evening before he made his way to the door with Sabrina.

“How’s the ankle?” Sabrina asked when they stepped out on the porch.

“Not bad,” he said honestly. “A little tender, but Hilda said it would be for a couple of days.”

“Hilda also said to keep icing it,” she reminded him.

“I will,” Nick nodded. “I’m also going to do some research. That demon didn’t just show up.”

“No, it didn’t,” Sabrina agreed. “I’ll do some digging too.”

“You mean if you can pull your nose out of this long enough?” Nick reached into his jacket and produced the second volume of Edward Spellman’s journals.

“You got it,” Sabrina broke into a smile as she reached for it. “Thank you, Nick.”

“Maybe the next illicit book club will be a little calmer,” he hinted.

“Maybe,” Sabrina chanced. “Keep me posted if you find anything out?”

“I’ll keep you posted,” he promised. “Tell your aunt thank you from me…”

“You have thanked her several times,” she reminded him. Nick had been nothing if not gracious. Almost too gracious, but she had picked up an undercurrent of what she could only define as nerves from Nick throughout the night. “But I’ll pass along your gratitude one more time.”

“I don’t think she likes me very much,” Nick admitted. She had been perfectly hospitable throughout the evening and certainly kind while healing him, but there was still an edge about her that told him she didn’t especially trust him. “I’m hoping flattery will get me somewhere.”

“I wouldn’t say she doesn’t like you…”

“It’s okay, Spellman,” Nick shook his head. “I’m a warlock.” Sabrina thought his smile was a little sad. “I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

“Ice that…”

“Ankle, I know,” Nick nodded. “I will, swear it.”

Sabrina stayed on the porch as she watched him hobble down the stairs. At the gate, he turned back to her as though sensing she was still there. He winked at her and then he was gone. She blew out a long breath.

She wouldn’t deny that something had shifted between them. Nick presented himself as smooth, cocky, sure of himself. But today, she had seen cracks in that armor. There was something about him under all of that swagger that was vulnerable, real. She thought, maybe, she could like that guy if he would just let it out.

She thought, too, that she had really liked how his arm had felt around her shoulders as she helped him inside.

With a long exhale, she went inside.

Thoughts about Nicholas Scratch would have to wait. For now, she had a date with her father’s journal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'd quite like to be a part of the illicit bookclub. Minus the sea demon, plus the Nicholas Scratch. Bit smooth with how he produced that second journal, eh? And Zelda... She's absent quite a lot, isn't she? Hmmm... 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one - thank you so much for reading!


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A slightly shorter chapter than usual this time - but the next one has lots of... stuff. :)

Prudence looked up from her book with a bored expression. 

“Can I help you, Nicky?” she asked, annoyed at how the warlock leaned on the library table she was studying at in an attempt to look imposing. 

“Seriously?” he asked. “Sending a cecaelia after Sabrina and I? How did you even know I was with her? Were you watching us?” 

Prudence closed her book. 

“What, Nicholas, are you talking about?” 

“You sent a sea demon after Sabrina and I yesterday,” he said again. “You’re playing dirty, Prudence.” 

“I did no such thing,” she stated. “I was – indisposed – after school yesterday.” 

“You’re lying.” 

“I’m not,” Prudence countered. “Believe what you want, Nicky, but I didn’t send a sea demon after you and the half-breed. I would have been far more creative than a demon that can’t survive above ground for more than a few moments.” 

Nick considered her. She looked right back at him. He couldn’t read minds like her, but he found he believed her. Prudence wasn’t the mastermind behind the cecaelia.

But if she wasn’t, who was? 

“Fine,” he relented. “But let it be known that I wouldn’t put it past you.” 

He spun on his heel to march away.

“Wait a minute.” 

He huffed and turned back to Prudence. 

“What?” 

“A demon attacked the pair of you?” 

She was genuinely curious, Nick noted. 

“It came out of nowhere,” he confirmed. “It was short-lived. As you’ve already pointed out, it can’t live above ground. It made its effort to attack us and disappeared back into the ground within two minutes.” 

“Who sent it?” she wondered. 

“If not you, then I have no idea.” He didn’t even have a short list of suspects at the moment. He had managed to convince himself it had been Prudence – or at least someone doing Prudence’s bidding – that summoned the creature to interrupt his time with Sabrina. “But I’m going to find out. That thing wasn’t sent for fun. It was sent as a message. Whether to me or Sabrina, I don’t know.” 

He also suspected it was tied to the odd breeze that filtered through the clearing when he and Sabrina banished Batibat, especially now that he knew Prudence wasn’t involved. But how they were connected, why both events occurred when he and Sabrina were together, and what was behind it all was a mystery. 

“Odd,” Prudence mused. 

“Odd indeed,” Nick echoed. 

“Too bad it didn’t swallow Sabrina whole. Could have saved us all a lot of trouble.” 

“Do you always have to be such a bitch, Pru?” Nick asked. 

“Do you always have to be such a warlock slut, Nicky?” she retorted. 

Nick shook his head and left her then, intending to go back to his room and maybe take a nap or read a novel he had picked up from the library before dinner. He would spend the evening looking into the sea demon. His path was blocked by one of Blackwood’s henchman. 

“Father Blackwood would like to see you.” 

“Why?” Nick countered. 

“That’s between you and Father Blackwood.” 

“Fine,” Nick rolled his eyes and changed course. He was moderately certain he wasn’t in trouble. He couldn’t rule it out – he was sneaking forbidden books out of the sanctum after all – but he also felt pretty confident that Cassius wasn’t onto him. And if he was, he didn’t know that Cassius would turn him in. He was beginning to think the man’s loyalties remained with Edward Spellman, not one Faustus Blackwood. 

He swore the air cooled a bit as he approached Blackwood’s office. As a warlock, he didn’t have a reason to distrust Father Blackwood, but there was something about the much older man that made his instincts prickle. He was cunning, sexist, and Nick was certain he had an ulterior motive. Even when Blackwood spoke to him in the public setting of the dining hall, Nick felt the need to watch his back, to be at the ready for an attack. He thought others felt that way too, but while they coward from Blackwood, he chose to face him head on. 

He couldn’t protect himself from what he couldn’t see after all. 

He swung open the door to Blackwood’s office without knocking, figuring if he was expected, it wouldn’t matter. 

Zelda Spellman sprung away from Blackwood’s desk in surprise. 

“Nicholas!” she chided. “Certainly you know to knock before you enter the High Priest’s office.” 

“I was summoned,” Nick answered, quick eyes surveying the scene. Nothing looked suspect and yet he was very certain he had interrupted something. “I figured he expected me.” 

“I did summon you,” Blackwood spoke from behind his desk. “Sister Spellman, that will be all.” 

Zelda tossed Blackwood an appraising look before she turned on her heel and walked out of the room, her chin tilted up. Blackwood didn’t speak until the door was shut firmly behind her. 

“Have a seat, Mr. Scratch.” 

Nick kept his eyes on Blackwood as he lowered himself to a chair. He didn’t want to sit. He wanted to stand, to be at the ready. He didn’t know why his flight or fight instinct was kicking in, but he had learned never to ignore it. 

“You wanted to see me?” Nick prompted after a moment of silence. Blackwood peered at him over long tented fingers. 

“Nicholas, you have exhibited talent beyond your years during your short time here.” Nick said nothing. He waited for Blackwood to get to the point. “First, I have to inquire, how did you learn the spells you are capable of?” 

“From books,” Nick answered honestly.

“No mentors?” Blackwood asked. “No teacher that helped you along?” 

“Once I learned the basics, I took matters into my own hands.”

Blackwood appraised him. 

“That’s very impressive.” 

“I prefer to call it resourceful,” Nick countered. 

“You are searching for something,” Blackwood continued. “For the greatness you know you are capable of. I can help you.” 

“How so?” Nick asked cautiously. 

“I’m a very powerful man, Mr. Scratch,” Blackwood reminded him. “I can introduce you to magics you have never seen before, mentor you in the ways of the highest. I know the right people, can help you make the right connections. In due time, I daresay you could even inherit my position of High Priest.” 

“This magic you speak of,” Nick hedged, “it’s dark magic, isn’t it?” 

“There’s no such thing as dark magic,” Blackwood told him. “It is the intent behind magics that make them dark.” 

“With all due respect Father Blackwood, I believe you and I have different intentions.” Blackwood’s eyes narrowed, but Nick didn’t falter. Any other warlock, at the Academy and beyond, would jump at Blackwood’s offer of tutelage and grandeur. Not him. The thought of being mentored by the man before him made his skin crawl. “My goals are likely not aligned with yours.” 

“And what, dare I ask, Mr. Scratch, are your goals?” Blackwood wondered. “You have shown substantial talent, but I would argue you lack direction.” 

“I’m seventeen,” Nick reminded the man. “I don’t have to have a direction. I’ve got hundreds of years to figure that out.” 

He was reminded of his conversation with Sabrina the day before in which she asked why he was so curious about her father. It was one thing to tell her the truth. The truth was not an option with Blackwood however. It would only fuel offer to serve as a mentor. 

“You will be eighteen soon.” 

“And no longer your problem,” Nick countered. “I appreciate your offer, Father Blackwood, but I think I will be just fine studying on my own during my remaining time at the Academy.” Nick stood, not waiting to be dismissed. He had heard enough. 

“You are going down a dangerous path, Mr. Scratch,” Blackwood told him. “Going out into the world with no preparation, no direction. That never ends well.” 

“Who says I’m not prepared?” Nick asked. “And we both know it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been thrust out on my own” 

“I have also noticed you are spending time with the Spellman girl,” Blackwood continued, unconcerned by Nick’s pushback. “She is not the type you want to associate yourself with. Not when you are a warlock of your caliber, with your potential.” 

“You seemed rather cozy with a Spellman,” Nick dared. 

“Zelda Spellman is my wife’s midwife,” Blackwood said in a tone laced with warning. “You have noted Lady Blackwood is pregnant. She is expecting twins.” His lips twisted into a dark smile. “Boys.” 

“Congratulations,” Nick said dryly. Two more Blackwood males to continue a lineage Nick didn’t think the coven would miss if it were stamped out entirely. 

“You no longer have a father,” Blackwood said. “Consider this fatherly advice.” Nick couldn’t hide his disgust. The man was nothing like his father, even if the elder Scratch was far from perfect. Blackwood ignored Nick’s distain, intent on saying what was on his mind. “Stay away from Sabrina Spellman, Nicholas. She will ruin a warlock like you.”

“I guess that’s a lesson I will have to learn for myself, isn’t it?” Nick countered. “Is that all, Father Blackwood? I would like to get back to my studies.” 

“For now,” Blackwood nodded. “But the discussion about your future isn’t over.” 

“I look forward to the next one,” Nick quipped. He let himself out of the office without another word. As soon as he was clear of Blackwood’s office, he did a quick locator spell, his mind already spinning with thoughts and theories as to why Blackwood had offered himself as a mentor. There was one person he could talk to it about – and that would likely have some information to help him. 

Sabrina was in the greenhouse. He hurried in the direction of it. 

She was in an herbology class, he realized when he peered through the glass. They were dispersed throughout the greenhouse, taking notes on various plants. He located the teacher and made sure she was sufficiently occupied before he slipped in. He found Sabrina easily enough, her hair serving as his beacon. 

“Hey.” 

Sabrina startled at Nick’s sudden appearance. 

“Nick!” she hissed. “What are you doing here?” 

“I have a theory,” he said. “Come with me.” 

“I can’t,” she shook her head. “I’m in class.” 

“Seriously?” Nick asked. “You want to stay in herbology?” 

“I maybe skipped it a time too many,” Sabrina admitted. Herbs and plants weren’t her area of expertise. That was all Hilda, and she didn’t much care to learn more than she had to about the subject. “I’m pretty much guaranteed to fail if I skip another class.” 

“I guess I’ll have to take matters into my own hands then,” he decided. 

“What are you up to, Scratch?” she asked as she watched him survey the space. She noted when he set his eyes on his target. She looked. It was Melvin. “Nick…” 

Melvin yelped. 

The vine he was studying came to life. It’s pods of pus, an important ingredient in some healing potions, were erupting, burning his skin without the other potion ingredients to neutralize it. Melvin continued to cry out and jump around smacking at his arms while their teacher and several classmates rushed to his aid. 

“Come on.”

Nick grabbed Sabrina’s hand and led her through the greenhouse at a quick clip before she could protest. He found an exit door and pushed through it. It led them outside, behind the Academy. 

“What the Heaven, Nick!” Sabrina erupted when they were outside. “You can’t just show up in the middle of my class, attack one of my classmates – who happens to be my friend – and drag me out of it!” 

“First of all, Melvin is fine,” he said, completely unaffected by her outburst. “His skin will burn for a few minutes, the teacher will heal him, he will go about his day as usual. Second of all, I needed to talk to you. I have a theory. Or at least an inkling. And you can provide me with more insight as to whether or not I’m right.” 

Sabrina crossed her arms. 

“This better be good.” 

“What do you know about Blackwood?” he countered. 

“What I’ve told you – he’s a sexist asshole who thinks a witch’s place is under his thumb.” 

“But what else do you know about him?” Nick pressed. “How did he get into the position of High Priest? What are his intentions for this coven?” 

“He was friends with my father,” Sabrina shared. “He was my father’s mentor, until my father surpassed him in both talent and popularity. At first, he worked with my father. But from what I know, his views didn’t align with my father’s and they had a falling out. When my father died, Blackwood was next in line. Or so I’m told. He was putting on the High Priest robes before my father’s remains were in the ground.” 

“So he had bad blood with your father,” Nick summarized. “What about your aunt Zelda? What’s her relationship with Blackwood like?” 

“She works for him,” Sabrina stated. “She teaches spellcasting and ritual magic. She’s also a midwife. She’s helping his wife through a difficult pregnancy.” 

“That’s it?” Nick questioned. 

“What are you implying, Scratch?” Sabrina accused. 

“I saw her in his office earlier,” he admitted. “It looked like I interrupted something.” 

“Zelda would never!” Sabrina was scandalized. 

“Easy Spellman,” Nick held up his hands. “Just reporting an observation.” 

“Why did Blackwood call you to his office?” she wanted to know. 

“He offered to mentor me,” Nick shared. “I turned him down. I don’t think he was too happy about it.” 

“You turned him down?” Sabrina clarified. “Most warlocks would jump at that opportunity. I know for a fact there are at least a few practically begging him to take them under his wing.” 

“I don’t know much about him, but I know his magic and mine don’t mesh,” Nick told her. “I don’t want any part of it. I know we speculated that he was up to something, but I really feel like he is. He went as far as to say he could introduce me to the right people, help me build the right network. He said I could even follow in his footsteps as high priest someday.” 

“Blackwood is underhanded,” Sabrina said slowly, her mind turning over what Nick had shared. “There is a reason he offered to mentor you.” 

“Such as?” 

“No idea,” Sabrina shook her head. “I suppose it could be as simple as the fact that you’re a powerful warlock and he wants you to follow in his footsteps. But that could be dangerous. There’s a pattern of people dying around him if they get too close or too powerful.” 

Nick’s eyes narrowed. 

“What are you implying, Spellman?” 

She pursed her lips for a moment and debated. She had only ever shared her thoughts with a few people, and all of them, including her aunts, had dismissed her. She wasn’t sure what Nick would say, but she thought it would be safe to tell him. Maybe even smart, seeing as how Blackwood had started off as her father’s mentor and was now proposing the same idea to Nick. 

“I think Blackwood killed my parents.” 

Nick eye’s widened. 

“You thought my implying Zelda and Blackwood were having an afternoon rendezvous was outrageous? What you’re suggesting is a far bigger accusation.” 

“I know,” Sabrina nodded. “My aunts and Ambrose think it’s a ridiculous accusation too. My parents died in a plane crash. It was an accident. But…” 

“But you can’t help but wonder,” Nick said slowly. He couldn’t help but wonder if she wasn’t too far off base. 

“I was with them,” she shared. “I was just a baby. My father sent me to my aunts before the plane went down. They walked into the entry and found me in a basket. No note, no explanation. It was Father Blackwood that appeared a couple of hours later to tell him my father and his wife were gone.” 

“What proof do you have that he killed your parents?” Nick questioned. 

“None,” Sabrina admitted. “It’s just a feeling I get.” 

“Any chance you’re looking for someone to blame and Blackwood happens to make a good target?” Nick asked. Sabrina sighed and shook her head in annoyance. 

“You sound like my aunts,” she informed him. “Don’t try to psychoanalyze me, Scratch. I feel in my bones I’m right about this. And you wouldn’t come to me asking questions if you weren’t at least a little suspicious of Blackwood yourself.” 

“He’s not trustworthy,” Nick agreed. “A killer? I don’t know. But he’s definitely got an agenda.” 

“That he wants you to be a part of.” 

“I want no part of it,” Nick shook his head. Yet he also wanted to know what that agenda entailed. “Blackwood gives me a bad feeling and if there’s anything I’ve learned over the years, it’s to trust my instincts.” 

A quiet, nagging voice told him he should have paid attention to his instincts when he made that bet with Prudence, but he silenced it and focused on Sabrina. 

“So what now?” she questioned.

“I don’t know,” Nick admitted. “I just feel like I need to know more about Blackwood.” 

“So much so you pulled me out of class to ask me what I knew about Blackwood?” Sabrina countered. “This could have waited until lunch.” 

“Tell me you desperately wanted to stay in herbology class.” Sabrina huffed and Nick knew he was right. “Change of subject. Read any good books lately?” 

Sabrina’s lips quirked into a small smile that made him return one of his own. 

“I might have,” she hedged. “I haven’t finished it yet, but it’s pretty interesting.” 

“It gets even better towards the end,” Nick hinted. 

“You’ve finished it?” 

“Couldn’t put it down before I gave it to you,” he shrugged. He had read it through twice in an afternoon. Speed reading – and the ability to retain what he read – was one of his gifts. 

“I should probably go back inside, get my bag and go to my next class,” Sabrina said. Still, she didn’t move. “Maybe check on Melvin.” 

“You could come to Dorian’s with me after school,” Nick proposed. Sabrina shook her head, but she was still smiling slightly. Nick took that as a good sign. 

“Not a chance.” 

“Can’t fault a warlock for trying,” Nick shrugged. 

“Did you come up with anything on the sea demon front?” she asked as they re-entered the Academy, Nick opening the door and holding it like a mortal gentleman would. 

“Not yet,” Nick shook his head. “But I’m working on it. How about you?” 

“Same. Ambrose said he would do some research today. I’m going to help him when I get home.”

“Instead of coming to Dorian’s with me?” he grinned. 

“You got it,” Sabrina confirmed. Nick chuckled. 

“I’m going to grow on you, Spellman,” he assured her. “Wait and see.” 

“You’re going to be waiting a long time, Scratch.” 

“We’ll see about that,” he teased. 

With a shake of her head, she walked off in the direction of the greenhouse. She felt Nick’s eyes on her as she went and she couldn’t deny it – she liked it. It had been a while since she was the object of someone’s attention, and while she didn’t have any intention of letting Nick get any closer, she didn’t mind his flirting. She could resist his charms.

And, she reasoned, it wouldn’t hurt anyone if she flirted back. Just a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nick is suspicious of Blackwood and it seems Sabrina might have found someone willing to at least humor her accusations about Blackwood's involvement with her parents' death. I like how confident Nick is too, all "I'm going to grow on you." I actually really like how confident Nick is in general in this fic - confident and more than willing to break the rules. 
> 
> Or at least pull Sabrina out of class. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading - you guys are actually the best and writing fan fic has proven to be a nice reprieve from my school work - which is also writing. I love it. <3 Your comments mean the world to me, so by all means, do let me know what you thought of this one!


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do bees and mortals have in common? Read to find out.

Sabrina yawned as she made her way through the woods to the mortuary.

It had been a long week.

She had stayed up far too late most nights, alternating between reading her father’s journal and looking up everything she could find on sea demons which inevitably led her down a path of reading about other demons and magics and the next thing she knew, Hilda was calling her for breakfast. She had woken up face down in books three times and had to scrub the ink off her face before she went downstairs.

As she walked, she considered surprising her friends. It was Friday night. There was a basketball game and both Harvey and Theo were playing. Roz would be cheering on the sidelines. It could be fun to show up at Baxter High, see them and a few of her other friends, tell them she came home for a surprise weekend.

She decided to do it.

She would take a nap first, eat a quick dinner, and with any luck, end the night at Cee’s with her best friends, drinking milkshakes, talking about the game, and laughing about silly things. She could also use a new horror novel to read, something to give her brain a break from all the research she had been doing. It would be just like she was a normal teenager with normal teenage concerns, not a witch trying to figure out why a sea demon appeared out of nowhere while attempting to find her place in an archaic system.

A buzzing sound flew past her ear. She batted the air but thought nothing of it. It was likely some insect or a bee or something. It didn’t dawn on her that it was February, far too early, not to mention cold, for bugs and bees to emerge from wherever they hid during Greendale’s often harsh winters.

It happened again.

She looked around, hoping to spot it.

Nothing.

She heard the buzzing yet again. She stopped walking and listened hard. The buzzing grew louder. She turned on the spot, searching. She gasped. A swarm of bees were the source – and they were heading right for her.

She broke into run.

The bees flew faster. She ran harder. They matched her pace. She couldn’t outrun them. She skidded to a stop, thinking fast. The swarm reached her. She had intended to try a spell, but with the way the bees were stinging her, she couldn’t focus. She closed her eyes and batted around her arms, doing her best to keep the bees at bay. She thought of Nick and the spell he had taught her to teleport.

 _Home,_ she thought.

“Lanuae Magicae!”

A moment later, she found herself on her hands and knees on brown, dead grass, panting as she tried to get her bearings after teleporting. She was faintly aware of the pain of several bee stings around her head and neck, but for the moment, she focused on trying to breathe through the nausea caused by her sudden teleportation.

“Sabrina?”

Sabrina raised her head.

She wasn’t at the mortuary.

She was at the edge of the woods by the Academy where one Nicholas Scratch had been making out with Adam. She could tell by the way Adam wiped at his mouth and the red marks on Nick’s neck.

“Nick?”

“What happened?” he hurried to her side, Adam forgotten. “What are you doing here?”

Too surprised at teleporting so incorrectly, she didn’t fight him as he helped her sit up. Nor did she push away his gentle hands that cupped her cheeks and tilted her head up so he could look at her.

“You’ve been stung,” he realized. “But… How? It’s too cold…” He shook his head. “That’s for later. Let’s get you taken care of first.”

“Nick?” came Adam’s questioning voice.

“Sorry Adam,” he said distractedly, his eyes still surveying Sabrina. She seemed more shaken up than anything. “She needs me.”

His chest did a weird sort of constriction at the idea of her needing him, but he added the thought to his shelf of things to assess at a later date. The witch before him was his main concern.

“I tried… I thought I was teleporting home,” Sabrina managed. “There were too many bees. I couldn’t concentrate enough to do a spell…”

“Hey, it’s okay,” he soothed. Without thought, he pulled her into his arms. “I’m going to take you home, okay? Your aunt will know what to do.” He brought her still closer. “Lanuae Magicae.”

This time, Sabrina did appear at the mortuary in the exact same position as they had left the Academy, her cradled in Nick’s arms, him crouching down. He stood and helped her to her feet. She looked dazed. He cupped her cheek again and brushed a thumb across it.

“How are you doing?”

“I could stand not to teleport again for a while.” She felt dizzy from it all. “And these stings are starting to burn. Itch, too.”

“Let’s get you inside,” he decided.

This time, the roles were reversed. He kept an arm around her and led her up the stairs, just as she had done for him the day the cecaelia attacked. She let them into the mortuary.

“Ms. Spellman?” Nick called out. “Ambrose?”

It was Zelda Spellman that appeared from what Nick now knew to be the mortuary office.

“Mr. Scratch,” she observed over her glasses. “Why are you bellowing in my home?” She noticed Sabrina’s appearance then and her expression softened. “Sabrina? What on earth!”

“Bees,” she managed. “In the forest. A whole swarm of them.”

“Bees?” Zelda repeated. “In February?” She shook her head. “Never mind that now. You will need Hilda.” She called for her sister. Her loud voice echoed through the house. “Nicholas, help her to the kitchen.”

She turned and expected them to follow.

“Come on, Spellman,” Nick said gently. “Let’s get you taken care of.” He kept his arm around her waist. He felt responsible for her, even though he had no idea what had happened to her. “I have you.”

He settled her in the same chair he had been in a few days earlier.

“Heavens!” came Hilda’s voice when she appeared in the kitchen, Ambrose on her heels. “Sabrina! What did you do?”

“She got into bees,” Nick answered for her. “She teleported herself to the Academy. I happened to be outside when she showed up.” He left out what he was doing when she was arrived. That didn’t seem pertinent to the conversation. “I brought her here.”

“I meant to teleport here,” Sabrina supplied. “And I didn’t get into bees. They came after me.”

“What do you mean they came after you?” Zelda questioned.

“Not now, Zelds,” Hilda bustled over to Sabrina. Nick finally stepped away, allowing Hilda room to work. He stood quietly nearby and kept his arms crossed, eyes only for Sabrina. Across the room, Ambrose watched him with interest, but Nick was too consumed in Sabrina to notice. “We need to get these stingers out. Zelda, start working on them. I’m going to go mix up a paste… Ambrose, get her a glass of water.”

The doorbell rang as Hilda hurried off.

“Who could that be?” Zelda wondered.

“We aren’t expecting any family of the deceased,” Ambrose said. “I’ll answer it.”

“I’ll get the water,” Nick said, wanting to feel useful. He wandered towards the cabinets, unsure of where to look, if he could just start opening doors, and hyper aware of how very much reversed the roles were from when it was Sabrina getting him a glass of water while he was at Hilda’s mercy.

“Second one on the left,” Zelda supplied.

“Ow!” Sabrina yelped as Zelda’s fingernails dug into her skin in an effort to pinch away the stinger still embedded.

“Hush,” Zelda chided. “It’s necessary.”

“Here you go, Sabrina,” Nick gave her the water.

“Thank you,” she said softly. “Ow!” she batted at Zelda’s hand. “Zelda!”

“Come now, Sabrina,” Zelda shooed her off.

“Auntie Zelda?” Ambrose sounded nervous. All three of them looked in his direction. Faustus Blackwood stood behind him, as formidable as ever.

“Faustus!” Zelda stood quickly and spun to face him. “What are you doing here?”

“My wife is in need of your assistance,” he said in a tone that wasn’t meant to be argued with. “I’m here to escort you to the Academy personally. She’s showing signs of early labor.” He gave her a meaningful look. “You know how important it is that she deliver these children healthy.”

“At any cost,” Zelda muttered under her breath. Blackwood couldn’t hear her, but Nick did and he was certain Sabrina had as well. “Of course, I’ll come at once. Nicholas, you’ll take over here. Sabrina, we will discuss this later.”

“A spell gone wrong?” Blackwood assumed.

“I don’t think that’s it,” Ambrose said with a hint of malice directed at Blackwood.

Without another word, Zelda followed Blackwood out of the house. Ambrose looked at Nick and Sabrina, then followed Blackwood and Zelda out of the kitchen. Nick sensed he was up to something, but he focused on Sabrina instead.

“I’ll try to be gentle,” he said as he sat down across from her.

“Can’t be worse than Zelda,” she stated. He noted how she gripped the chair seat with both hands.

“Relax,” he coaxed, his hand going to one of hers. “You’re making it worse, tensing up like this.” Slowly, she allowed him to loosen her grip. “There,” he said in a soft voice. She released the other hand on her own. His fingers grazed over the sting on her cheek Zelda had just plucked a singer from, then went to her jaw where there was another sting. “Stay still.”

“That didn’t hurt as much,” she observed as his featherlight touch managed to pluck the stinger out. “You lack Zelda’s fingernails.”

“Lucky for you,” Nick quipped. He moved to a sting where her shoulder met the curve of her neck. “Also lucky for you to be wearing a few layers of clothes. You were only stung where your skin was exposed.”

“So my neck and face,” Sabrina pouted.

“It could have been much worse,” Nick reminded her. He moved on to another sting. “Tell me what happened?”

“I would also like to hear that,” came Ambrose’s voice. “Zelda and Blackwood are gone,” he added. “I suspect he’s up to something more than Lady Blackwood’s preterm labor. Not like him to care much for another, is it? Still, I didn’t get much out of him, not for lack of trying.”

“She’s carrying twin boys,” Sabrina reminded him. “That’s Blackwood’s legacy and that matters to him.”

“I’m with Ambrose,” Nick stated. “He wanted something more. But never mind that. What happened to you?”

“I was walking back from school,” she shared. “Through the woods, like I usually do. I heard a buzzing pass by my ear but didn’t think much of it. There was another one right after, and I started looking around. I saw the swarm coming towards me and I tried to run. They were too fast. I stopped to spell them away, but I couldn’t focus with all of them stinging me, so I closed my eyes and tried to teleport here. Except I ended up outside of the Academy.”

“I was outside,” Nick told Ambrose. “She showed up on her hands and knees, panting. I thought it would be best to come straight here.”

“Hilda will take care of her,” Ambrose agreed. “But what about the bees? It’s far too early for a swarm of bees. It’s supposed to snow tonight at that.”

“Last one,” Nick said to Sabrina as he plucked a stinger from the other side of her neck. “That makes six stings total.”

“Seven,” Sabrina corrected. “There’s one here.” She motioned to the back of her neck. Nick leaned forward and reached around her. Sabrina kept his eyes on his, taken in the moment by how tender his touches were. He felt for the sting, then plucked the stinger out. He kept his eyes on hers for a moment as he pulled away. He held the stinger up and only then did he break eye contact to look at Ambrose.

“This isn’t a normal bee,” he stated. “These are demonic.”

“Demonic?” Hilda shuffled back into the room with a stone bowl in hand.

“The bees that stung Sabrina,” Nick confirmed. “They were sent from Hell. I’m sure of it.”

“By who?” Ambrose asked.

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” Nick countered.

“It answers which one of us was under attack,” Sabrina added, eyes on Nick. “It was me, not you.”

“True,” Nick agreed. It also entirely exonerated Prudence. She wouldn’t have attacked Sabrina without him around in an effort to win the bet, and demonic bees weren’t really her style anyway. Her methods were far more subtle.

“All the stingers are out?” Hilda asked.

“Seven in total,” Nick confirmed. He moved aside so Hilda could work.

“They’re burning and itchy though,” Sabrina told her aunt.

“This will help,” she said as she began to smear a bright blue cream onto Sabrina’s wounds. “It may sting a bit as it draws out the venom.” The look on Sabrina’s face was enough to confirm as much. “Who would want to harm you though, love?”

“Blackwood,” Sabrina said automatically. “He’s had it out for me since forever.”

“Just because Blackwood is the obvious choice doesn’t make him the right choice,” Ambrose reminded her.

“I wouldn’t rule him out though,” Nick argued. “Blackwood is up to something. You said it yourself. What is anyone’s guess, but he has an agenda and I would imagine a witch such as Sabrina would get in his way. Never mind the fact that she’s a Spellman.”

“What’s that mean?” Hilda wondered. “The fact that she’s a Spellman?”

“Seriously, Auntie?” Ambrose questioned. “The Spellmans have been the bane of Blackwood’s existence for decades. He excommunicated you for crying out loud.”

“He hated my father,” Sabrina reminded Hilda. “And I haven’t exactly made things easy on him.”

“No,” Hilda mused, “you most certainly have not.”

“Blackwood offered to be my mentor,” Nick told them. “A few days ago. I turned him down, but I expect he had a reason for it.”

“You’re powerful,” Ambrose stated. “I saw you teleport with a nonverbal spell the night you walked Sabrina home from town. I also heard about your conjuring a marquis of Hell and,” he glanced at Sabrina, “other things equally as impressive. Of course Blackwood wants you.”

Nick knew Ambrose knew about Batibat.

“Does he still have those boys?” Hilda wondered. “The ones that dress all in black?”

“He does,” Nick confirmed.

“The Judas boys,” Sabrina supplied. “Judas as in betrayer of Jesus.”

“That’s what he calls them?”

“Fitting, isn’t it?” Sabrina said dryly.

“Well, I don’t like this,” Hilda fretted. “I don’t like that you have been attacked twice this week. There is something going on and I don’t like it at all.”

“I don’t like that Blackwood whisked Zelda off,” Ambrose added. “Something doesn’t sit right there, either.” Now was one of those times where being under house arrest was especially at a disadvantage.

“Zelda’s doing her job,” Hilda said. She offered no more, but Nick, Ambrose, and Sabrina were all certain she knew more than she was willing to let on. “How are the stings feeling, Sabrina?”

“Better,” she admitted. “How hideous are they?”

“They are already fading,” Hilda assured her. The mortuary phone rang.

“I’ll get it,” Ambrose said. “Phones and doors seem to be my specialty.” His bitterness was clear.

“We need to get to the bottom of all of this,” Hilda said worriedly.

“We will,” Nick assured her. “Demons can’t come into our realm unless they are called forth. These demons were called forth and set on Sabrina for a reason. We need to know who and why.”

“Blackwood,” Sabrina said again. “I’m sure of it.”

“Maybe,” Nick nodded. “But it could be someone else.”

Hilda worried her bottom lip.

“I’m supposed to meet Cee for a little dinner date,” she said. “I think it’s best I cancel…”

“Don’t do that,” Sabrina shook her head. “I was going to go to the Baxter High game and surprise my friends, tell them I came home for the weekend, but now I guess I will stick close to the mortuary, given that my face is covered in bee stings.”

“Still, I don’t want to leave you…”

“Nick will be here,” Sabrina heard herself saying. It would be easier to talk about everything that had happened without Hilda around. “Ambrose, too.”

Nick crossed his arms over his chest. He was under the impression that he would be leaving soon now that Sabrina was okay, but she apparently had other plans for him. He wasn’t going to disagree.

“Oh?” Hilda asked, looking from Sabrina to Nick and back again.

“I’m not going back to the Academy and we need to research,” Sabrina said by way of explanation. “Nick knows a lot about demons. Between him and Ambrose, we might be able to make some headway.”

“Okay then,” Hilda still waivered. “But… Dinner…”

“We can order pizza,” Sabrina said. “I’ll send Nick to pick it up.” Nick raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “Really, Hilda, don’t cancel your date with Cee. I know you don’t get to go on a lot of them in the first place, with him being so busy at the diner.”

“Okay then,” Hilda said, sensing defeat. “I’ll leave the three of you to your researching.”

“Two,” Ambrose re-entered the room. “That was the sheriff. There was a murder-suicide on the edge of town. Older man and his wife. Their bodies will be here soon. I need to do an autopsy on both as soon as possible.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t…,” Hilda still debated.

“Go on, Hilda,” Ambrose encouraged. “I can still serve as chaperone. I’ll nip up every fifteen minutes, make sure the children aren’t getting into any misdeeds.”

“Ambrose!” Sabrina exclaimed.

“What?” Ambrose shrugged. “That’s why she’s hesitating.”

Again, Nick said nothing. He didn’t particular care if Hilda stayed, but he thought he might have a little more success in wooing Sabrina if she left.

“No need to play chaperone,” Hilda sighed. “I’ll keep my plans.”

“Now that that’s settled,” Ambrose clapped his hands together once. “Sabrina, pepperoni and anchovies for me, please. I will be in the morgue if you need me.”

Hilda left as well, mumbling about needing to change for her date. Nick looked to Sabrina.

“So – I guess I’m hanging around for a while?” he clarified.

“If you want,” Sabrina shrugged. Nick thought she looked a bit down.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, the stinging doesn’t hurt…”

“That’s not what I’m asking about,” he cut her off. “You mentioned planning to see your friends. You’re disappointed it’s not working out.”

“Well, yeah,” Sabrina admitted. “It was a spur of the moment idea, but I got excited about it. I can’t go out with paste all over my face.”

“It’s not your best look,” Nick said seriously. Sabrina glared. He chuckled. “No, Spellman, even with blue paste dotting your face, you’re still one of the most beautiful witches I have ever seen.”

Sabrina blushed and immediately berated herself for allowing Nick to illicit such a response from her in the first place.

“If you’re sticking around, I meant what I said about sending you for pizza,” she informed him.

“What if I had a better idea?” Nick proposed.

“Dare I ask?” Sabrina asked hesitantly.

“Why don’t we go to that game you mentioned?” He had no idea what he was suggesting, but she looked sad and he wanted to make her smile again. “You should be fine to wash that paste off. I will do the gentlemanly thing and escort you, just in case there are more bees or snakes or toads or whatever plague might befall you next.”

“I don’t need a hero,” she informed him. “I am not a damsel in distress.”

“You most certainly are not,” Nick agreed. “What do you say, Spellman? Take me to this mortal game of yours?”

“Basketball,” Sabrina said, fighting against the urge to smile. “It’s a basketball game.”

“That’s the one where they run around with an orange ball and throw it through a net, right?”

“That’s the one,” Sabrina confirmed. Her lips desperately wanted to smile.

“First milkshake, first Hilda cookies, first basketball game… You could make this one heaven of a memorable week for me, Spellman.” He was certain he almost had her convinced. “Honestly, at this point, I might have to go without you. I’m pretty into this game.”

Sabrina snorted back her laugh.

“You’re going to hate it,” she informed him. “The team is mediocre at best. The gym is loud and sweaty and the highlight is really the concession stand junk food.” Her eyes widened. “But Ambrose think we’re going to be getting pizza… He will be hungry when it comes up from the autopsies…”

“So we bring him something back,” Nick dismissed the objection. “It sounded like his hands were going to be full for a while. He might not even know we’re gone.”

Sabrina worked her lip as she considered Nick’s proposition. She really did want to go see her friends. She would never admit it, but it felt a little safer to go with Nick. She was becoming more and more aware that she had exceptionally strong abilities, but no idea how to use them properly. Something – or someone – had their sights set on her. If Nick was with her, there would be back up if something went wrong.

“Fine,” she agreed. “Let me go clean up.”

“Excellent,” Nick nodded, smiling big. “Basketball game it is.”

“Don’t make me regret this,” she warned him. “And keep your hands to yourself.”

“You won’t,” he assured her. “As for my hands?” He smirked devilishly. “I’ll leave that part up to you.”

* * *

Nick was fascinated.

Mortal high school was nothing like the witchcraft Academies he had experienced. The gymnasium was bright and loud. Badly painted banners that said things like “Go Baxter High!” and “Beat Central!” hung on the walls. Most of the crowd was in red and gold and those that weren’t were in the green and black of the other school. The game moved fast, the cheerleaders were spirited. It was, in some ways, sensory overload.

So much so he hadn’t even tried to move in on Sabrina as he sat with her high up in the bleachers, taking it all in. There was so much to see that he couldn’t decide where to look first.

Sabrina watched him out of the corner of her eye. She imagined his look resembled that of a mortal child seeing Disney World for the first time. He was entirely out of place and completely unaware of the eyes that drifted towards him, assessing him, wondering who he was. She had certainly seen Roz’s raised eyebrow when she spied the pair entering the gym together from her spot on the sidelines. She leaned in so he could hear her over the crowd.

“Thoughts?”

“This is weird,” he replied. “Why do they think it’s fun to run around and get all sweaty in the name of throwing a ball towards the net? Especially when they miss it half the time?”

He didn’t quite understand the game, but he had figured out enough to know that Sabrina calling the team ‘mediocre’ was generous. They were downright terrible and the men in unflattering black and white stripes seemed to whistle a lot. He had experienced second-hand embarrassment every time a Greendale player stepped up to a line on the court to shoot what Sabrina called a ‘free throw.’ Their odds of making one were low while the other team seemed unable to miss. Next to him, Sabrina laughed.

“Mortals love their sports,” she told him. “Wait until you see a football game for the first time.”

“That’s the one where they run into each other, right?” Still grinning, Sabrina nodded. “That seems even more pointless.”

“Athletic endeavors were never your thing, were they?” she wondered.

“I’m a warlock,” he informed her. “I’ve not only been blessed with power, I have been granted a high metabolism and a six-pack with minimal effort.”

“Never say that in front of a witch,” she informed him. “That’s the kind of comment that gets you both cursed and pushed down the stairs.” It was his turn to laugh.

“Spellman, I’m pretty sure you have nothing to be ashamed of under those sweaters and skirts you wear.”

For the second time that night, Sabrina’s cheeks flamed red. Nick looked pleased with himself.

“Don’t be so crude,” she admonished.

“Easy Spellman,” he said, eyes turning back to the game. “It was a compliment.”

Sabrina said nothing else and turned her attention back to the court, but it was hard to ignore the heat between she and Nick. She wanted to believe it had everything to do with how closely they were packed in the gymnasium, but it was becoming harder to sell herself on that thought. She was attracted to him and she blamed it entirely on his good looks and her teenage hormones.

When the game was over, Nick stood and allowed Sabrina to lead the way down the bleachers. He followed her into a hallway where they paused to wait for her friends. Nick spun the dial on the locker next to the one Sabrina leaned against.

“What’s the point of this?” he asked as he spun it again.

“Of lockers?” she countered with a raised eyebrow. They didn’t have lockers at the Academy, exactly, but each student did have an assigned cubby of sorts for personal belongings that generally went unused as they kept most of their things in their dorms.

“And this dial on them,” Nick nodded.

“You store your books and notes and such in your locker between classes,” she told him, amused by how little he knew about such simple mortal things when he knew so much about seemingly everything in the magical world. “The dial is a combination lock. You spin the right code to unlock your locker.”

“So these things are full of books?” he asked with a sincerity so complete Sabrina had to smile.

“Not like you’re thinking,” she said, almost hating to break the illusion he had already formed of a magical space that held books he may not have read yet. “They are full of ragged textbooks and crumbled up papers with bad grades.”

“Huh.” He spun the dial yet again. He spied a girl he thought he recognized. “Isn’t that your friend?” He nodded towards the girl in a cheerleading uniform. Sabrina turned.

“Roz!”

“’Brina!” Roz pushed through the crowd and enveloped Sabrina in a big hug. “What are you doing here? I didn’t know you were coming home this weekend!”

“Surprise!” Sabrina said as she pulled away. “Where are Harvey and Theo? I thought we could maybe go to Cee’s, get a milkshake or something?”

“Theo and Harvey are around,” Roz ventured. Nick picked up on her elusiveness as he hung back, watching their interaction. The girl’s eyes fell on Nick. Sabrina seemed to remember he was there.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, feeling slightly rude. “Roz, this is Nick. He’s a – friend – of Ambrose’s. Nick, this is my best friend, Roz.”

“Nice to meet you,” Roz said politely. “You were at Sabrina’s the other weekend, weren’t you?”

“I was,” Nick nodded, purposefully elusive. He decided to give them a minute. “I’m going to use the restroom. Be back in a few.” He pushed off the locker and drifted away.

“Um, something to share ‘Brina?” Roz asked, eyes sparkling. “Did you perhaps come home for the weekend to see Ambrose’s friend?” She frowned. “Wait. Wasn’t he the guy at the counter at Cee’s the other week? You said he was just passing through, but then he turned up at your place the next day and you said he was a friend of that Providence girl…”

“Prudence,” Sabrina corrected with a hint of a smile. “He is Prudence’s friend. Prudence introduced him to Ambrose and they hit it off.”

“And why is he with you?” Roz pressed, eyes still shining.

“He was hanging out at the mortuary with Ambrose.” Another easy lie. “But there was a murder-suicide on the edge of town and Ambrose had to accept the bodies and begin the autopsies. Nick’s plans got derailed so I offered to let him tag along.”

“Right,” Roz said knowingly.

“That’s exactly what happened.” It wasn’t, by any means, but she couldn’t exactly tell the truth. “He’s not even my friend. He’s an – acquaintance.”

“A hot acquaintance,” Roz stated. She looked past Sabrina. “Hey, look, there’s Theo and Harvey!”

“’Brina!” Theo was the first to hug her. He smelled like soap after his post-game shower. “What are you doing here?”

“I came home for a surprise weekend,” she said as she accepted a short one-armed hug from Harvey. “Great game, by the way.”

“You’re being kind,” Harvey said. “We got crushed.”

“An actual blood bath,” Theo confirmed.

“It wasn’t that bad…,” Sabrina tried.

“It was,” Roz supplied. Sabrina snorted back her laugh. She saw Nick approaching cautiously. He looked incredibly out of place in the halls of Greendale High School in his all black ensemble, hands shoved in his pockets. More than his appearance, however, was the fact that he looked nervous. Sabrina recognized that he was entirely out of his comfort zone.

“Harvey, Theo, this is Nick,” she introduced as he arrived at her side. “Nick, these are two of my best friends, Harvey Kinkle and Theo Putnam. Harvey, Theo, this is Nicholas Scratch.”

“Hi,” Theo introduced, as friendly as ever. “Do you go to school with Sabrina?”

“I’m homeschooled, actually,” Nick answered. “I just moved to the edge of town with my uncle.”

“Cool,” Harvey offered in an offput tone. “How did you meet Sabrina?” Sabrina opened her mouth to answer, but Theo beat her to it.

“You were with those friends of Ambrose’s the other weekend,” he remembered.

“Yeah, I’m friends with Prudence and now Ambrose,” Nick said easily, and Sabrina breathed an internal sigh of relief at how effortlessly Nick explained how they knew one another. “Good game, by the way.”

“We’re terrible,” Theo stated. “No need to lie to us.” Nick just chuckled.

“Do you play?” Harvey asked. He stood with his arms crossed as though he were trying to come across as intimidating. He was taller than Nick, but Sabrina saw it, even if Harvey didn’t. Nick had the upper hand, and not just because he was a warlock. He had an edge that Harvey lacked.

“Basketball?” Nick shook his head. “No. I prefer more intellectual pursuits.” Sabrina heard the challenge in Nick’s voice. It was clear the two had decided they didn’t like each other. She could see why Harvey might bristle around Nick – to him, it looked like Nick was with his ex-girlfriend – but she didn’t know why Nick felt similar towards Harvey. They had only just met.

“Why don’t we all go to Cee’s?” she suggested. “Get a milkshake, maybe some fries, catch up…” Harvey, Roz, and Theo exchanged awkward looks. Sabrina noticed. “What? What am I missing?”

“We would love to,” Roz started in a gentle tone that told Sabrina she wasn’t going to like what came next. “But, see, the thing is…”

“We’re going on a ski weekend,” Theo finished. “A bunch of us on the basketball team and the cheer squad pitched in money to rent a cabin. We’re about to load up a bus and head a couple of hours north.”

“Oh,” Sabrina said, trying not to look disappointed. “Well, that sounds like fun.”

“I’m sorry, ‘Brina,” Roz offered.

“We had no idea you were coming home for the weekend,” Harvey supplied.

“Yeah, otherwise, we would have stuck around,” Theo said. “Or asked if you wanted to come. We could still… There might be room…”

“It’s fine,” Sabrina shook her head with a forced smile. She was sure there was no room left at the cabin for her – and she wasn’t sure she would be welcomed anyway. “At least I got to see you guys for a few minutes, right? So it wasn’t a total bust.” She kept her forced smile on her lips. “Go, have fun…”

“We’re sorry, Sabrina,” Roz said. “Really…”

“It’s fine,” Sabrina worked hard to hide her disappointment. “You had no idea I was coming home. Go, have fun, ski. I’ll see you guys again soon enough and you can tell me all about it.”

“Maybe we could come visit you one weekend,” Theo offered.

“Yeah, that could be fun,” Harvey said. “The four of us, like old times…” Sabrina noted how he purposefully said ‘four of us.’

“Maybe,” she said because there wasn’t anything else she could say. Theo checked the time.

“We should get going,” he said apologetically.

“Go,” Sabrina said one more time. “Have fun.”

“It was nice to meet you, Nick,” Roz offered.

“Likewise,” Nick nodded politely. They parted ways, Roz saying she wanted to change, Harvey offering to wait, Theo taking the job of making sure the bus didn’t leave without them. Nick and Sabrina set off in the opposite direction, Sabrina quiet, Nick mindful of the fact that she was upset. He bumped her arm gently with his as they walked towards the exit. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said too quickly for it to be the truth.

“Your friends just took off on a ski trip without you,” Nick pointed out. “I’m no expert on how mortal friendships work, but I would think that stung a little – maybe even more than those bee stings from earlier.”

Sabrina sighed. There was no point in denying it.

“It sucked,” she admitted. “Their lives are moving on without me and while I knew it would happen when I chose to embrace my witch nature, it still sucks to see.”

“I’m sorry,” Nick offered, and she thought he might even be genuine. “But they did seem truly apologetic.”

“They were,” Sabrina agreed. “Which, by the way, thanks for lying so smoothly. Homeschooled, living with your uncle…”

“It wasn’t entirely a lie,” Nick reasoned. “Independent study, Blackwood…”

“Blackwood would make a terrible uncle.”

“Entirely true,” Nick agreed. They were outside now. He stopped on the sidewalk, prompting her to do the same. He considered her. She still looked sad and he still wanted to cheer up. “How about that milkshake, Spellman?” Sabrina bit her lip. It was one thing when Nick was going to be with her and her friends. But now, with her friends gone, it would be just them, one-on-one. She was hungry though, and Nick had certainly helped her out earlier. It could be okay to spend a little more time with him.

“How about pizza as planned?” she proposed. “I should bring Ambrose something home anyway.”

“Lead the way, Spellman,” Nick encouraged. He was in no hurry to head back to the Academy. They resumed walking.

“So, those bees,” she ventured. “What do you know about them?”

“That they’re demonic. They colonize in the crevices of Hell, much likes bees do in this realm. Had we not gotten those stingers out of you so quickly, their venom would have continued to seep in and slowly but surely killed you.”

Her hand went to her cheek. She had used makeup and a little magic to hide the stings, but she could still feel the whelp it left behind. It was more than a little unnerving to know the venom could have ended her.

“And I assume they can be summoned?”

“Obviously,” Nick nodded. He glanced at her as they walked. “You didn’t hear anything unusual in the woods? A snap of a twig even? Didn’t notice anything unusual?”

“Just the bees,” Sabrina shook her head. “You think whoever sent them was near?”

“They would have had to be,” Nick confirmed. “Whoever did it was incredibly careful not to be seen.” A chill ran through Sabrina as she realized whomever was after her had been within mere yards and she was none the wiser. “If I were you, I would be a little more mindful about walking through those woods alone. Unless you’re prepared to use that power of yours to fight back.”

“I can take care of myself,” she said stubbornly.

“You can,” Nick agreed. He didn’t offer more, but Sabrina noted that he meant it. He didn’t agree in a condescending way like Blackwood or one of the other warlocks at the Academy might, but in an absolute ‘yes, you can’ manner. He had confidence in her abilities, even if she was just learning how to use them.

“What went wrong when I teleported?” she asked. ”I closed my eyes and thought ‘home,’ but I ended up at the Academy.”

“Perhaps your subconscious thinks of the Academy as home?” Nick offered. Sabrina scoffed.

“Hardly.”

“Okay then, what else were you thinking in the moment?”

“That I was getting stung,” Sabrina recounted. “And I was trying to remember the incantation you taught me.”

“Maybe that was it then,” Nick mused. “You thought of me, you appeared near me.”

“But I thought of home…”

“You’re new to teleporting, Spellman,” Nick reminded her. “You were also in the midst of being attacked by demonic bees. I told you the other day, most people mess up their first few teleportation attempts. Your thoughts were all over the place in the moment. The spell chose me as your desired location.”

“I guess,” Sabrina said. She vowed to do better next time.

The pizza place was crowded. Sabrina and Nick ordered and waited to the side, trading small talk, mostly Nick asking questions about mundane mortal things like parking meters and the mail service. Pizza in hand, he offered to teleport them home and she agreed, taking his hand without question. Back at the mortuary, they took their pizza into the living room. Sabrina watched Nick as he lifted a slice and bit into it.

“What, Spellman?”

“Is that your first slice of pizza?” she asked curiously. Nick chuckled.

“No, this isn’t my first slice of pizza. I’ve had plenty of pizza.”

“Just checking,” she quipped. “You were so fascinated by parking meters that I couldn’t be sure you had ever had something as mortal as pizza.”

“Parking meters still don’t make sense,” Nick shook his head. “It’s bad enough mortals have to actually drive places. Seems rude to make them pay to park, too.” It was Sabrina laughed a bit and Nick couldn’t help but smile. “You have a great laugh, Spellman.”

“You are an incorrigible flirt, Scratch,” Sabrina countered. “But thank you for earlier – and for hanging out with me tonight. Even if it was a bust.”

“I wouldn’t call it a bust,” he ventured. “It worked out pretty well for me after all.” Sabrina rolled her eyes, but she wore a small smile.

“I’m sure you would have rather gone back to whatever you were doing with Adam rather than go to a mortal basketball game with me.”

Nick looked at her for a moment in a contemplative sort of way before he shook his head.

“No,” he said, “I don’t think I would have.”

He found he meant it, bet aside. Things with Adam had been heating up before Sabrina appeared, but the moment she materialized out of thin air, he had forgotten all about the warlock in favor of making sure she was okay. It had felt like the right thing to do, the only thing to do.

“How are you feeling by the way?” he asked. “Both with the stings and the whole mortal thing?”

“Stings – I’m okay,” she nodded. “They are a little sore, but nothing I can’t handle.”

“And the mortals?” Nick pressed.

“It still stings,” she said. “No pun intended. But I set myself up for this, didn’t I?”

“Why?” Nick wanted to know. “Why put yourself through straddling both worlds like this?”

“Because they’re my friends,” she said simply. “I love them. I can’t simply walk away from them. Even if, in the end, I suppose I will have to.” Deep down, she knew she only had a few more years, at most, before she would have to withdraw from her friends completely. She preferred not to think about it. “Besides, my mom was mortal. As much as I want to know about my dad and his work, I feel a certain obligation to her too. Entirely turning my back on my mortal side feels like it would be a slap in the face of her memory.”

“She knew about us,” Nick reminded her. “She is one of only a few mortals in all of history who not only knew magic exists, but married into it, embraced it. I don’t know that she would be disappointed in you for leaning into your magical side.”

“She’s not here to tell me that though, is she?” Sabrina countered. She shook her head. “Let’s talk about something else.” She didn’t like discussing her conflicted feelings about her dual nature with her aunts or Ambrose, let alone Nick. She reached for a second slice of pizza. “In fact, let’s talk about _you_ for a change.”

“Me?” Nick repeated. He helped himself to another slice of pizza. “There’s not much to tell.”

“And that tells me there is, in fact, plenty to tell,” Sabrina accurately stated. “Where did you learn all of your fancy magic, Scratch? You have been kicked out of every school you have been to in the last couple of years, so you had to learn it somewhere.”

“I taught myself,” Nick answered honestly. “I learned at a pretty young age that punishment both in my household and at the Academy in Kutná Hora was being sent to the library to study. My classmates hated it. I loved it.”

“So you got in trouble on purpose,” Sabrina guessed.

“Sometimes,” Nick admitted. “It wasn’t like that in Wales or Andorra though. By the time I got kicked out of Kutná Hora, I had taught myself enough that I was bored in classes. They put me in independent study in those schools because they didn’t know what to do with me.”

“You just tried spells?” Sabrina questioned. “With no regard for repercussions if they went wrong?”

“If you know the basic principles of magic, you don’t need to be afraid to try things,” Nick explained. “Magic always has a cost, right? It’s give and take. As long as you understand that, there is no reason not to test your limits. You just have to make sure you don’t take more than you give.”

In that moment, Sabrina admired him. When she had first signed the Book of the Beast, she had tested her magical limits a few times, not understanding the give and take he was referring to, the delicate balance that kept their world whole. It had caused her a lot of trouble.

“I tried a resurrection spell,” she admitted after a beat. “It didn’t go well. I didn’t understand that you had to trade a life for a life.”

Nick sat back on the couch and crossed his ankle over his knee, eyes on her.

“Now this, Spellman, sounds like a story worth telling.” She rolled her eyes but indulged him.

“Harvey’s older brother Tommy died in a mining accident,” she shared. “The Weird Sisters caused it.”

“Prudence, Dorcas, and Agatha?” Sabrina nodded.

“I had enlisted them to help me out with a little revenge plot against Billy Marlin and some of his friends. They took things too far and in an attempt to get back at me, they caused part of the mines to cave in. It killed Tommy and two other guys. Harvey was devastated. He and Tommy were close and Tommy gave up a lot to be here in Greendale, protect Harvey from their alcoholic father.” She shook her head as though dismissing the memories. “I felt guilty, so I got the idea to use the family Cain plot…”

“The Spellmans have a Cain plot?” Nick interrupted.

“Just to bring Hilda back to life,” Sabrina said wryly.

“Those are rare,” he said. “And does Hilda occasional just drop dead or something?”

“Only when Zelda kills her,” Sabrina nodded as though it were the most normal occurrence in the world. In their household, it was. “We did the spell – me and the Weird Sisters, I made them – and I killed Agatha.” Nick let out a low whistle.

“Remind me not to cross you.”

“I didn’t realize it was a life for a life though, so when Agatha came back to life…”

“She got really sick and Tommy was essentially a zombie,” Nick finished. “Standard unbalanced equation.”

“Where were you when I actually needed you?” Sabrina asked. “You could have saved me a whole lot of trouble by telling me that little bit of information. I ended up having to confess to my aunts and Harvey had to kill his own brother.”

“Explain that part,” Nick said. “Harvey killing his brother. He still doesn’t know you’re a witch?”

“Tommy, or what was left of him, was dangerous,” Sabrina explained. “I was going to do it, but Harvey got to him first. The police deemed it self-defense which, really, it was. Tommy was trying to kill both Harvey and their dad, whichever he could get to first.”

Nick absorbed the information.

“Harvey’s never suspected anything?” he asked. “He’s never noticed how odd this house is? I mean, I know it’s a mortuary, but if people simply took the time to look around, they would see signs of magic and satanic worship everywhere.”

He had not only felt the magic the first time he walked through the door, he had seen it. The house practically vibrated with it. Between the artwork and relics, there was no question as to what the Spellmans were.

“As Zelda likes to say, we hide in plain sight,” Sabrina said. “We rely on the fact that people in general are too wrapped up in their own problems to take in the things around them. We get the occasional question from funeral guests about a painting or an artifact, but it’s all explained away with a simple lie, a spell if needed.” She gave him a sharp look. “How did we get back on the topic of me and my family? It was your turn to start talking.”

“You offered up the resurrection story,” he reminded her. And he had been all too happy to hear it – it took the heat off of him.

“Well, tell me something else about yourself,” she half demanded.

“My favorite color is black,” he said. Sabrina rolled her eyes.

“Tell me something real.”

“That is real,” he insisted. “That’s my favorite color.”

Sabrina decided to just go for it.

“How old were you when your parents died?”

There was a beat of silence as Nick absorbed her question. He didn’t talk about his parents, ever. They had died and he had put their deaths in a metaphorical box and locked it away somewhere down deep inside of him. Whenever it rattled around to escape, he found a vice – a warm body, booze, or dangerous magic, usually – to tamp it down. But it was an innocent enough question, all things considered, and he did know an awful lot about the Spellman family at this point. If he was going to get anywhere with Sabrina, he needed to offer her a little bit more about himself. She wasn’t going to be swayed by his magic. She would want to know _him_ if things were going to go anywhere between them.

Which was terrifying.

He braced himself.

“Ten,” he answered heavily. “They died when I was ten.”

“You had ten years with them,” she offered. “That’s ten more than I got with mine.”

He managed a hint of a smile.

“I suppose that’s one way of looking at it,” he agreed. He understood then that she got it – she had lost her parents too. He knew other witches and warlocks that had lost one or both of their parents. But like him, or at least the side of him he showed to the world, they didn’t seem to care too much. Sabrina did care, however. Even sixteen years later, she felt her parents’ absence. “Ten years is something.”

A not quite comfortable silence fell over them as they finished off their slices of pizza. Sabrina reached for a third piece and glanced at Nick.

“Did you finish _Frankenstein_?”

“The day after I got it,” Nick confirmed. “I liked it.”

“Want to watch the movie?” Nick raised an eyebrow.

“There’s a movie?”

“Of course there is.”

Sabrina stood up and went to the TV. Nick watched curiously as she turned on the TV set and popped in a movie.

“We’re watching a movie?” he asked. Sabrina looked at him and grinned.

“You’ve never seen a movie before, have you?”

“No,” Nick admitted. “Another mortal first at your hands, Spellman.”

“Then we have to do this absolutely right,” she determined. “Be right back.”

She left him in the living room, and he took a moment to exhale a long breath. He had thought his night was going to be spent tangled up with Adam and whomever else he could get his claws into. He had been in the mood for multiples before Sabrina appeared and derailed his train of thought. The night was, surprisingly, better, if not a bit tamer. The idea that he had ever wanted to spend it in the tangles of debauchery was laughable now.

Sabrina returned a few minutes later with a large bowl of popcorn, two boxes of candy, and a bottle of soda.

“Proper movie snacks,” she informed him. “Conjure some ice in our water glasses?”

Nick was quick to do as she asked. He filled the two glasses, then poured them each a glass of soda. Sabrina started the movie, then joined Nick on the couch, putting the popcorn and candy between them on purpose.

“Enjoy your first movie night, Scratch.”

He grinned at her as he dug his hand into the popcorn.

“Oh I think I will, Spellman.”

Nick tried to pay attention, but he quickly decided movies weren’t really his thing. Watching Sabrina watch the movie, however, was far more entertaining. She kept her eyes on the screen, entirely absorbed in what was unfolding. She jumped at the scary parts, laughed when it made sense. Ambrose joined them at some point, just long enough to eat a few slices of pizza before disappearing back into the morgue to finish up the second autopsy. When the movie was over, he did the honors of bringing the lights back up.

“What did you think?” she asked.

“The book was better,” Nick stated. Sabrina laughed.

“It usually is,” she agreed.

He helped her carry their pizza boxes and dishes to the kitchen. She was walking with him to the door when it swung open.

“Zelda!” Sabrina greeted at the sight of her aunt.

“Sabrina,” Zelda replied in a tone that betrayed how tired she was. “Nicholas, I see you’re still here.”

“I was just on my way out, Sister Spellman,” he replied.

“Everything okay with Lady Blackwood?” Sabrina asked.

“I managed to stop the labor, but she is on bedrest for the foreseeable future,” Zelda told them. “Sabrina? Be a dear and put on the kettle. It has been a long day and I need a cuppa before bed.”

“Instead of a martini?” Sabrina couldn’t help herself.

“I plan to make it Irish,” Zelda drawled. “Go on, now.”

Sabrina knew she had no choice but to agree when Zelda was like this. Her aunt rarely showed her weariness, but when she did, there was no going against her wishes. She turned to Nick.

“Thanks again, Nick.”

“Anytime, Spellman,” he nodded. “Try not to get attacked before bed?”

“I’ll see what I can do,” she quipped. “I’ll see you at school.”

“See you at school,” Nick echoed with a smile. She returned an almost bashful smile of her own before she turned and disappeared in the direction they had just come from. “Goodnight, Sister Spellman,” he said as he passed Zelda.

“Mr. Scratch,” Zelda replied with a polite nod of his head.

He was halfway down the porch stairs when Zelda spoke again.

“Nicholas.”

He stopped and looked up at her. Zelda stood at the top of the stairs, peering down at him. He saw her for the intimidating witch she was in that moment.

“Blackwood has taken quite an interest in you and your abilities.”

“He has,” Nick said carefully. He wasn’t clear on where Zelda stood with Blackwood. She seemed to respect him. She worked for him. And yet she seemed to have her motives as well. “I’m afraid my views don’t align with Blackwood’s however.”

“Have you considered why he wants you as a mentee?” Zelda pressed.

“Because I’m powerful,” Nick said without missing a beat. “He gravitates to the powerful.”

“He does,” Zelda nodded, eyes never leaving him. “You should question why, Mr. Scratch.” She drew back her shoulders. “And many thanks for assisting my niece today.”

“No thanks necessary,” Nick told her.

“Consider the why, Mr. Scratch,” she said one more time. She turned on her heel and disappeared back inside. Nick sighed and shook his head at her cryptic words.

He decided to walk back to the Academy in hopes of finding some clue as to what happened to Sabrina. When he reached the edge of the woods, he cast a tracing charm and guided it in front of him. He could feel that same sense of something in the woods either watching him or lying in wait as he walked. He decided right then and there he didn’t much care for the Greendale forest. He cared for Sabrina walking through it alone even less.

He was halfway between the Academy and the Spellmans when the air before him crackled into blue specks of light.

“Remnants of magic,” he said to himself.

Logic told him it could have been from Sabrina as she tried to escape, but he knew better. The hair on the back of his neck prickled and that told him enough – it wasn’t Sabrina’s magic that lingered. It was the dark magic that had conjured the bees. He searched the area for any sign or clue but came up empty handed. The only thing he had for sure was that someone or something had been in those woods with her. The idea made his blood turn cold.

At the Academy, he slipped in quietly, even though it was officially the weekend and curfew for the older students didn’t exist – not that he cared as he considered it a suggestion anyway. It was quiet as he made his way to his bedroom. He wondered, briefly, why he had been appointed a private room when most of the other warlocks slept in a shared dorm space, but he didn’t ponder it long. He knew why – he was powerful and power meant something in this place. A private bedroom and en suite wasn’t something he was going to turn down.

He decided to take a shower, finding himself too keyed up to sleep. He thought of Sabrina as he showered, not in the dirty way he might think of another witch or warlock while washing, but in a contemplative sort of way. He had his bet with Prudence, but there was something more at work with Sabrina Spellman and he didn’t know how to process it, what it meant, if it meant anything at all. All he knew for sure was that he enjoyed spending time with her in a way he generally didn’t spend time with others. That and he wanted to spend more time with her, even if he was subjected to another mortal sport or movie.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts about her as he emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist that he didn’t notice the male figure perched on the edge of his bed.

“I would like an update.”

“Unholy shit!” Nick exclaimed. He startled and had to grab at the towel to keep it from falling to the floor. “What in the Heaven are you doing here?”

“I would like an update,” the man repeated. “You have been here a few weeks now.”

“These things take time,” Nick secured the towel more firmly around his waist. “I’m the new guy, remember? I can’t just waltz in and have things fall in my favor. I have to lay the groundwork.”

“You certainly are taking your time.”

“I know what I’m doing,” Nick stated.

The man looked him in the eye with a cold stare.

“I certainly hope you do.”

He disappeared before his warning had faded into nothing. Nick exhaled.

“Un-fucking-believable,” he muttered.

He dropped the towel and fell onto his bed without bothering with clothes. He was suddenly bone weary.

Everyone wanted something from him. Everyone had some sort of expectation of him. Most of those expectations were low. Even the ones disguised as high expectations around his abilities were ultimately low – they knew what he was capable of and assumed he lacked the morals to care about the consequences.

He wondered, not for the first time, if he had ever stood at a chance at being something other than what everyone thought he would be.

He wondered if he would ever have the chance to figure out who he, Nicholas Scratch, actually was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a lot. Demonic bees (inspired by a recent encounter my dog and I had with a yellow jacket nest), Nick coming to Sabrina's aid and being rewarded with a night of mortal activities, the Fright Club off on their own plans without Sabrina, and Nick's mysterious visitor. Who could it be... 
> 
> This was my favorite chapter to date - I hope you liked it too! Please let me know what you thought! Your comments are all the praise hands! <3


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little girl talk and a wicked wind...

Sabrina couldn’t put her father’s journals down. She had read the second one through, then read it again. She had both journals open before her now, simply looking at them, memorizing how Edward looped his ‘L’s’ and the way he forgot to dot the ‘I’s’ more often than not. Her handwriting looked nothing like his, she noted. She wondered if there was something with her mother’s handwriting hidden in the attic or in the corners of the basement where their things were stored so she could compare. 

There was a knock on her door. 

“Come in!” she called. 

Her door edged open. She expected her aunts or Ambrose. 

She did not expect Roz. 

“Hi,” Roz greeted with a nervous sort of smile. 

“Roz, hi,” Sabrina replied as she scrambled upright. She closed the journals and stacked them neatly on her nightstand. “What are you doing here?” 

“I took a chance that you hadn’t gone back to school yet,” Roz said as she joined Sabrina on her bed. “I can’t stay long – there’s a Sunday night homework cram session awaiting me at home – but I wanted to see you for a few minutes. I’m glad you’re still here.” 

“I’m going back in the morning,” Sabrina said. For once, it wasn’t too much of a lie. She really was going back to school in the morning, just not to the school Roz thought she was headed to. “I’m glad you stopped by. How was the ski trip?” 

“It was fine…” 

“Roz,” Sabrina said with a pointed look. “You don’t have to spare my feelings.” 

She had made her choices after all. 

“It was a lot of fun,” Roz admitted with a guilty sort of smile. “I’m not much on skiing, but I tried. Turns out Theo is a snowboarding protégé and Harvey isn’t half bad either.” 

“I could see Theo being good at snowboarding,” Sabrina nodded. Despite what she told Roz, she did feel a pang at being left out of their plans. 

“Theo met someone while we were there,” Roz continued in a gossipy sort of manner. “His name is Robin and he goes to Riverdale. Sparks flew.” 

“Juicy,” Sabrina said. “Is he going to see him again?” Roz shrugged a shoulder. 

“They exchanged numbers. Things look promising.” 

“What about you?” Sabrina wondered. She rarely got to see her friends. One-on-one time with any of them was especially rare. She was going to take advantage of having Roz all to herself for a little girl talk. “Are you seeing anyone since we last chatted?” Roz avoided eye contact. Sabrina’s eyes widened. “You are! Tell me everything!” 

“It’s… Really new…” 

“So? I’m not going to see you for several weeks when I leave tomorrow. I want to know everything! Who is he? Do I know him? Does he know you like him? Have you gone on a date yet? Details, Roz! I need details!” 

Roz considered her friend. She looked nervous. 

“Sabrina, you’re my best friend,” she began. 

“Your very best friend,” Sabrina confirmed. “Always.” 

At least until she could no longer pull off her youthful appearance and was forced to “lose contact” with her mortal friends. 

“That’s why I came over,” Roz continued. “I mean, I wanted to see you, but I also wanted to tell you… Ask you…” She trailed off. 

“Roz?” Sabrina promoted, concern growing. “What is it?” 

“The guy is… Harvey.” 

Silence followed as Sabrina digested what Roz had just said. 

“Harvey,” she repeated slowly. “As in… Harvey?” Roz nodded. 

“It just sort of happened,” she said. “We have been spending a lot of time together and he kissed me last night. We’re going on a date later this week, but I didn’t want to sneak around behind your back. I wanted you to know.” She chanced a small smile. “I want you to be okay with it.” 

Sabrina didn’t speak right away. Roz and Harvey. Together. Her best friend and her ex-boyfriend. She took a moment to sort through how she felt. She expected to feel hurt. Blindsided. Shocked. And in some ways, she was. She hadn’t exactly seen it coming. But, she realized, she actually was okay with it. 

She was okay with Harvey moving on. 

She was especially okay with him moving on with Roz. 

“I think you and Harvey could be happy together,” she told her friend. “I want that for you. For both of you. If you want to date Harvey and see where it goes, you have my blessing.” 

“Really?” Roz asked with uncertainty. 

“Really,” Sabrina nodded. “Harvey and I broke up months ago. I’m away at school, meeting new people, learning new things. There is no reason he shouldn’t be doing the same.” She smiled a bit. “Or else seeing who is right in front of him, as it were.” 

“I just didn’t want you to think we were sneaking around,” Roz said. “Theo doesn’t even know yet. I would have found a way to call you or maybe even just showed up at your school to tell you myself. You’re my best friend and as great as Harvey is, you are more important. If you weren’t okay with it, I wouldn’t do it.” 

Sabrina reached for a hug. There weren’t words for how much she treasured Roz’s friendship, especially now that she was aware of the hourglass on its duration. 

“Make him take you somewhere besides Cee’s,” she suggested when they pulled apart. “A proper date.” 

“A proper date,” Roz chuckled as she wiped at her eyes. “Thank you, Sabrina. I really wouldn’t date him if you weren’t okay with it.” 

“There is no need to thank me,” Sabrina shook her head. “I just want you to be happy – both of you.” 

“What about you?” Roz asked. “That Nick guy isn’t the worst thing to look at…” 

“He is definitely attractive,” Sabrina admitted. “But I would never admit that to him. He would never let me live it down.” 

“He likes you,” Roz said knowingly. 

“No, he likes the idea of getting in my pants,” Sabrina corrected. “He’s handsome and charming and he knows it. I’m keeping him at a safe distance.” 

“So is that what they are calling bringing him along to a basketball game at your old high school these days?” Roz asked. “Keeping him at a safe distance?” 

“I told you, his plans with Ambrose fell through…” Roz gave her a look. Sabrina sighed, knowing she was caught. “Fine. I asked him to come because I…” She trailed off. Technically, Nick had initiated the whole thing. She had planned on staying home and sending him to get pizza. But she hadn’t really hesitated before agreeing to go into town with him, hang out with him. She certainly hadn’t hesitated to keep him around that evening, eating pizza and watching movies. “There is more to him than the cocky guy he makes himself out to be. When he lets his swagger fall away, I think I could perhaps be willing to get to know him.” 

“’Perhaps be willing to get to know him,’” Roz repeated. “That’s elusive.” 

“He has a bit of a bad boy history,” Sabrina shared. “He is home schooled because he has been kicked out of his last few schools.” She tallied that as another half-truth. “You know that’s not my type.” 

“Maybe he is your type though,” Roz ventured. “You’re judging a book by its cover, so to speak. You just said there is a guy underneath all of his swagger that you might be willing to get to know. I wouldn’t dismiss that so quickly.” She smirked. “Besides, you could have so much fun ‘getting to know him.’” 

Sabrina laughed and shook her head. She would never be able to reconcile Roz’s preacher’s daughter upbringing with the Roz that spoke so openly about sex and intimacy. 

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she said. 

“Fine, fine,” Roz agreed. “Otherwise, how are you? How is school? I realized the other night that when we were all together a couple of weeks ago, we talked mostly about us, not about what you have been up to.” 

“That’s because I want to know what you guys are up to,” Sabrina said. “I want to know about your lives, what I’m missing by not being here.” 

“We want to know that about you, too,” Roz reminded her gently. “So spill. We talked about the boy. Now is school? Tell me everything, as you like to say.” 

“School is… school,” Sabrina shrugged. “It’s been a few months, but I’m still getting the feel of it, you know? The people there are so different, so driven. Driven by things I’m not used to. I’m learning a lot, but I feel like I could learn so much more if given the chance.” 

“You’re trying to find your place,” Roz observed, ever insightful. “What do you mean you could learn more if given the chance? Are your classes not challenging enough?” 

“Something like that,” Sabrina nodded. “I’m trying to be moved into more advanced classes, but there is a lot of red tape.” 

“What about friends?” Roz continued. 

“You sound like a mom right now,” Sabrina informed her. 

“Just looking out for my best girl,” Roz ribbed her. Sabrina smiled and missed her best friend immensely in the moment, even though she was right there. 

“I’ve made a couple of friends,” she said. “Elsbeth and Melvin. There are others that will have a conversation with me, but I’m not quite sure we’re friends.” 

She was a pariah of sorts at the Academy. Not only was she half mortal, she was the daughter of Edward Spellman and he had a volatile reputation amongst her classmates, thanks largely to Blackwood’s rhetoric. It didn’t help her cause that she often pushed back against tradition or demanded an equality not given to witches that rocked the status quo. Add in the fact that she was the niece of one of the stricter teachers at the Academy and there wasn’t much working in her favor in the popularity vote. 

“Sabrina, are you happy there?” Roz asked plainly. “Because it doesn’t seem like it.” 

“I’m not unhappy,” Sabrina ventured. “I’m just – finding my place.” 

That was her greatest struggle. She wouldn’t be fully happy at Baxter High where she couldn’t lean into her magic. Yet she wasn’t fully happy at the Academy either without the friendship and support her mortal side offered. 

“You will figure it out,” Roz told her. “It’s one of your greatest gifts in life – figuring things out when they seem impossible.” 

Sabrina had to smile. Roz had no idea how accurate that statement was. She opened her mouth to say something, but Roz had gone rigid. 

“Roz?” she frowned. “Roz? Are you okay?” Roz didn’t reply. She sat there in a trance of sorts, unblinking and entirely still. “Roz!” Sabrina reached out and shook her. 

“What?” Roz startled. “Oh! Um… Whoa…” She shook her head and blinked her eyes rapidly. 

“What just happened?” Sabrina demanded. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Roz breathed. She was clearly shaken however. 

“No, you’re not,” Sabrina shook her head. “What happened, Roz? You were like, not here. It was like you went somewhere else.” 

“I’m tired,” she offered. “Long weekend and all.” She got to her feet a bit unsteady but determined all the same. “It’s getting late and I have some homework to do. I’m sure you need to pack and stuff before you head back to school tomorrow.” 

“Roz…” Sabrina stood as well, concern evident. 

“I’m okay, ‘Brina,” Roz said with a forced smile. “Swear it.” She reached for a hug. “It was so good to see you, Sabrina. And thank you, for being okay with Harvey and I.” 

“I’m glad you stopped by,” Sabrina said. “Why don’t we see if one of my aunts can drive you home…” 

“No, I’ll be fine,” Roz insisted. “I feel better already. Maybe just low blood sugar or something. Think Hilda has a cookie or something I can snack on on the way home?” 

“You know she does,” Sabrina said, already starting towards the door. “But are you sure that’s it? You scared me, Roz…” 

“I’m fine,” Roz assured her. “Nothing one of Hilda’s cookies can’t fix.” 

Sabrina escorted her downstairs and the pair stopped in the kitchen where Sabrina loaded Roz up with both cookies and a couple of muffins. She sat on the porch steps once Roz drove away. Something had happened to her friend that had nothing to do with low blood sugar. She was sure of that. 

She fretted, debating. She hadn’t told Roz to call her when she got home, but she needed to know if her friend was okay. Mind made up, she stood and walked down the porch steps. There was a boundary around the Spellman mortuary that kept people from teleporting in and out without warning. Once she was through the gate and on the other side of it, she closed her eyes and envisioned Roz’s house. 

“Lanuae magicae.” 

In a ‘pop,’ she was there. 

She grinned a bit in self-satisfaction when she realized she had ended up exactly where she meant to. She hid in the shadows at the edge of the woods and waited. It wasn’t long before Roz puttered up to the house in her father’s beat up old car. She watched Roz get out of the car and disappear inside, seemingly just fine. Satisfied, she closed her eyes once more and reappeared at the mortuary. 

As luck would have it, Ambrose was perched on the porch when she arrived. He sat out there a lot, particularly at night. It was as close as he could get to the outside world. 

“Did you just… teleport?” he asked when she joined him. 

“I did,” she confirmed. “New trick.” Ambrose narrowed his eyes at her. 

“Not one you learned at the Academy,” he said knowingly. 

“Nick taught me,” Sabrina admitted. “It was kind of on the fly. It was after the sea demon attacked us. He was in too much pain to focus enough to do it, so he walked me thorough how to do it.” 

“You tried to teleport when you got stung the other day,” Ambrose put the pieces together. “Except you ended up at the Academy.” 

“Nick said it was probably because I was trying to remember the spell he taught me in the moment,” Sabrina said. “I teleported to him, even though I was thinking ‘home,’ and he happened to be at the Academy.” 

“Interesting,” Ambrose hummed. 

“Interesting how?” Sabrina wondered. 

“Everyone messes up their first few times,” Ambrose mused. “But it’s interesting you teleported to Nick. It’s generally a place you teleport to, not a person. If you were thinking ‘home,’ logic says you would have still teleported home.” He considered Sabrina. “Except you never do things logically, do you?” 

“Well, no matter,” Sabrina shook her head, not up for hearing Ambrose remind her of her rap sheet that was largely the result of not thinking things through. “I needed to go check on Roz. She stopped by earlier and something weird happened.” 

“As it tends to do when you’re around.” Sabrina gave him a look. He was treading on thin ice tonight. “What weird thing happened?” 

“She went all still,” Sabrina shared. “Her eyes glazed over and it was like she left her body. She came out of it pretty quickly and said it was just being tired from a long weekend and low blood sugar, but I don’t buy it.” 

“Did it ever occur to you that perhaps she was telling the truth?” Ambrose wondered. “Maybe it really was low blood sugar. Not everything odd that happens around here is a sign of something foreboding to come.” 

“So sea demons and Hell-sent bees are normal?” 

“Well, no,” he admitted. “But with Roz? That was likely truly just low blood sugar.” 

“If you say so,” Sabrina sighed. She didn’t believe him but she wasn’t going to argue. 

“Why was she here, anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be at school?” He put air quotes around ‘school.’

“She took a chance that I would still be home and stopped by.” Sabrina leaned against the railing. “She wanted my blessing to date Harvey.” 

Ambrose’s jaw fell open. 

“Harvey? As in Kinkle?” 

“One in the same,” Sabrina nodded. “I told her I was fine with it.” 

“And are you?” Ambrose asked skeptically. 

“I am.” Sabrina confirmed. “I’m kind of surprised to say as much, but I am. I’m okay with it.” She sat down on the rocking chair beside him. “I think I’m starting to realize how different Harvey and I really were – even if you take the whole witchcraft thing off the table. He was a perfect first love, but he wasn’t meant to be my forever love.”

“Would the amount of time you have been spending with a certain warlock have anything to do with this change of heart?”

“No!” Sabrina was adamant. “I’ve just changed, I guess. Harvey – he’s sweet. Simple. Not simple in a bad way, but in an uncomplicated, just wants to live a quiet, happy life sort of way. He hasn’t had an easy life, with losing his mom, his dad’s drinking, Tommy’s death… He wants quiet, uncomplicated. Even if I weren’t a witch, I don’t think quiet and uncomplicated is in the cards for me.” 

“It’s not,” Ambrose agreed. “You don’t have it in you to sit quietly by.” He grinned a bit. “Can you imagine you, a housewife? Having dinner ready for your husband when he comes home from work, doing the washing and the mending, rearing the children…” 

“I want some of that in the future,” Sabrina admitted. “I want what my parents had. No time soon, obviously, but by the time I would be remotely ready for things like marriage and kids, Harvey would be old and dead.” 

“Warlocks are looking better and better, aren’t they?” Ambrose hinted. 

“I am not interested in Nick,” she stated. “Not like that. Besides, Hilda says warlocks aren’t exactly the trustworthy, committal type. Nick was making out with a warlock when I teleported to the Academy the other day. I’ve heard the rumors of him going into Dorian’s private rooms with an assortment of witches and warlocks. I walked in on him in the middle of an orgy in your attic, for crying out loud. That’s not the kind of guy I want to spend time with.” 

“First, the orgy hadn’t really started when you barged in,” Ambrose stated. Sabrina rolled her eyes. “Second, that warlock likes you.” 

“He likes that I won’t give into him,” Sabrina corrected. “He likes the chase. He doesn’t like me. And he’s got a certain interest in my father, so all the more reason to hang out with me.” 

“He likes you,” Ambrose insisted. “I watched him the other day when you were stung. He was worried. When he was removing the stings, he was gentle. And he hung out with you the rest of evening – with mortals at that. He likes you, Sabrina. And you like him. You let him hang around, after all.” 

“Agree to disagree,” Sabrina decided. “Any luck with your research into sea demons and bees?” 

“No,” Ambrose shook his head. “I know a lot about sea demons and demonic bees now, but now how they go together.” 

A sudden breeze stirred the otherwise peaceful air. The same ghostly moaned followed it. 

“What the Heaven was that?” Ambrose sat forward in his chair. 

“That’s the same breeze Nick and I felt when we banished Batibat,” Sabrina reported. “It was exactly like that.” 

“That wasn’t a natural breeze,” Ambrose observed. “I thought the pair of you were exaggerating, that it was just heightened senses in the middle of the woods in the dead of night. But whatever that was – it’s an omen.” 

“An omen of what?” Sabrina wondered. 

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” 

Sabrina only nodded. 

Something wicked was lurking in Greendale and it seemed to have its sights set on her. She had to figure out what it was before it got to her first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter update today - because the next one was just too jam packed to break up. Roz and her "low blood sugar," that wicked wind... Plenty happened here. Trust me. 😉
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't expect so much love for the Roz/Sabrina girl talk last chapter! Wow. Thank you so much! 
> 
> Ready for illicit bookclub?

Nick sat with his elbows on the table, both hands pushed into his hair as he studied the notes in front of him. He prided himself on his ability to figure things out, but nothing made sense. Frustration crept in around the edges of his concentration as he tried and failed to find the thread that tied everything together. He was so wrapped up in trying to solve the problem before him that he didn’t hear the approaching footsteps.

“Breezes, cecaelia, and bees,” came Sabrina’s voice. “Fascinating independent study you’ve got going on here.”

Nick smiled and sat back in his chair.

“Hey, Spellman,” he greeted as she sat down next to him. “How was the rest of your weekend?” He had thought about checking in on her a couple of times, but he hadn’t, not sure how to go about it. He didn’t want to seem too obvious, but he found he kind of – missed – her.

“Quiet,” she answered. “Until last night, anyway. That’s why I was looking for you.”

“To tell me you found another warlock?” he asked, only half joking. That would be his luck. “Or perhaps – a mortal?”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head with a pointed look. “But there was another breeze.”

Nick sat upright.

“Another breeze? When?”

“I was sitting outside with Ambrose after I teleported back from Roz’s and it whistled around the mortuary. Same sinister feel, same moan at the end of it. Ambrose felt it too.”

“Did he have any thoughts?” Nick asked.

“None,” Sabrina shook her head. “But he agreed that it wasn’t a normal breeze. He had thought we exaggerated what we felt in the woods since it was late, but he retracted that statement.”

“I don’t know what it could be,” Nick admitted. “I have been reading everything I can on demonic bees and sea demons, but I haven’t found much on sinister breezes.”

“Don’t spirits travel on the wind?” Sabrina asked.

“They can,” Nick agreed. “But I don’t think that was a spirit.”

“What do we do?” Sabrina wondered. “How do we figure out what it was?”

“We keep digging,” Nick shrugged. “And hope nothing else happens in the meantime.” He considered her, taking in how pretty she was. Her mere presence brightened up the dark tones of the library. “Sounds like you got a chance to hang out with your friends this weekend after all.”

“Not really,” Sabrina shook her head. “Roz stopped by the mortuary last night in case I hadn’t left to go back to school yet. I was, of course, still there. I told her I was going back this morning.”

“Not a total lie,” Nick mused, recognizing the same thing Sabrina had when she told Roz the half truth – she was going back to school in the morning, just not the one Roz thought she was going to.

“She had this weird catatonic moment though,” Sabrina continued. “She said she was fine, that it was just low blood sugar or something, but I wanted to make sure she got home okay, so I teleported to her place to make sure she arrived safely.”

“Catatonic?” Nick questioned. “How so?”

“It was like she left her body for a moment,” Sabrina explained. “We were sitting on my bed talking and she went all still. Her eyes glazed over and she just wasn’t there. It was short-lived, but it was weird.”

“You think it was something more,” Nick concluded.

“Call me crazy, but yeah,” Sabrina agreed. “Especially after that breeze drifted through not a half hour later.”

“It does seem a little too convenient for it to be coincidence,” Nick agreed. “I’ll add it to the list, see if I can’t figure out if there’s some sort of tie between weird breezes and catatonic friends. But I suppose it really could be some mortal medical thing.”

“It could,” Sabrina agreed, because he was right. Not everything that happened in her life was caused by magic. She took a moment to take him in. His table was littered with books and papers. His hair was disheveled, and he wore a pair of wireframe glasses she hadn’t seen before. She kind of like the look. “Why are you doing this?” she wondered. “Why are you helping me?”

“I was there,” he said. “I felt the breeze, saw the cecaelia, got stung by it, helped you after the bees stung you. I feel like I’m in this now.” He smiled his best smile. “Besides, it means I get to spend time with you.”

Sabrina was taken back. He seemed so sincere right then, like he meant what he was saying. This was the side of him she liked, the one that was sucking her in a little more each time he let it out.

“We haven’t had illicit book club to talk about the second journal,” she ventured.

“We haven’t,” Nick agreed, sliding right back into his charming demeanor. “Drinks at Dorian’s after school?”

“Three o’clock on a Monday is too early to drink,” Sabrina pointed out.

“Depends on who you ask,” Nick shrugged. “We don’t have to drink then, but meet me at Dorian’s anyway?”

“Why not the clearing?” Sabrina asked. “That’s been our go-to.”

“And it’s been the epicenter of whatever is after you,” he reminded her. “Dorian’s, after school.”

“Fine,” Sabrina agreed. “Dorian’s, after school. I’ll meet you there.”

“I’ll take care of the drinks,” Nick said.

“Nick…,” Sabrina warned.

“Trust me, Spellman.” He grinned at her. “I know what I’m doing.”

***

Sabrina stopped short just inside of Dorian’s. The place was empty, save for Dorian who was behind the bar, idly drying glasses. Nick was nowhere to be found.

“Ah, Sabrina,” Dorian greeted. “Quite early today, aren’t you love?”

“I’m meeting…”

“Nicholas,” Dorian finished. “He’s just through there.” He jerked his thumb through a doorway.

“He’s in one of the private rooms?” Sabrina clarified, apprehension setting in. That wasn’t what she bargained for. Nick appeared as though on cue.

“Hey, Spellman,” he greeted. “We’re in here.”

Dorian gave her a knowing look before turning to disappear into the back. Sabrina approached Nick cautiously. He grinned as he watched her.

“Don’t look so nervous.”

“You said nothing about a private room,” Sabrina stated.

“We can’t have illicit book club in public, can we?” Nick countered. “Come on.” He turned and disappeared, leaving her with no choice but to follow. She was surprised to find herself in a small, comfortable room with no more than a café table for two and a cozy fire roaring in the fireplace. “See?” he asked, arms spread wide. “Nothing scandalous in here.”

“You’re in here,” she pointed out. Nick chuckled at her wit.

“Touché,” he agreed. He nodded towards the table. “Shall we sit?”

Sabrina lowered herself to one of the chairs. Nick, however, went to a sidebar she hadn’t noticed. When he turned back to her, he had a mug in each hand.

“Hot chocolate,” he announced. “Hope that’s okay.” He put a mug in front of her.

“Dorian makes hot chocolate?” she wondered. She lifted the mug and took a sip. It was delicious. Better even, she dared to think, than Hilda’s.

“That’s a Nicholas Scratch special,” he said. “I’m kind of helpless in the kitchen, but I know how to make hot chocolate.”

“You made this?” Sabrina clarified. She took another sip. It was definitely better than Hilda’s. not that she would ever admit that to Hilda.

“I did,” Nick nodded. He tapped his fingers on his mug and decided to share something he had never shared with another person. “It’s my mom’s recipe. She used to make it for me when I was a kid, when I’d had a rough day, or she thought I deserved a treat.”

Sabrina’s smile was soft.

“Hilda makes Ambrose and I hot chocolate when we’ve had a bad day,” she told him. She took another sip. “It turns out magic and promiscuity aren’t your only talents. This is pretty good.”

“Thanks,” he said with a bashful smile. “I’ve never made it for someone else before.” He turned his mug in his hands. “I haven’t made it in a while, actually.”

“Why make it for me?” Sabrina chanced.

“Honestly? I thought you would appreciate it.” He looked almost embarrassed. “And I… maybe wanted to do something nice for you. Since you’ve had a kind of rough couple of weeks and all.”

Sabrina felt warm all over and it had nothing to do with the fire in the hearth or her cozy sweater.

“That’s… sweet of you,” she managed.

“I’m not all awful,” he told her in a moment of vulnerability. “Despite what you may think.”

“That’s the thing,” Sabrina admitted, “I don’t think you’re awful.” Nick’s surprise was genuine.

“You don’t?”

“I think you act so cocky because you’re afraid of someone seeing the real you,” she informed him. “I think you hide behind your flashy magic and charming smile to keep people at a distance.”

“You think my smile is charming?” he asked, flashing said smile.

“See?” Sabrina pointed at him. “You’re doing it right now.”

“I thought we were here for book club,” he tried again to change the subject.

“We are,” Sabrina nodded. “But you gave me an opening to talk about you and you are really good at avoiding that particular subject.”

“There’s not much to tell about me,” Nick insisted. “You know my parents died, that I’ve got a vengeful familiar, and that I’ve been kicked out of a few schools. That’s pretty much all there is to know.”

“I don’t believe that,” Sabrina said simply. She knew there was far more to the warlock across from her. “But I’ll let you off the hook for today, since you made me this.” She lifted her hot chocolate. “And I really do want to discuss my father’s journal. I finally gave it over to Ambrose to read before I left for the Academy this morning.”

“Thoughts on what you read?” Nick asked, relieved to be off the hot seat.

For the next hour, they discussed Edward Spellman’s second journal. This one had been mainly composed of experimental spells and his findings. Nick was chomping at the bit to try a few, Sabrina was curious about them but more cautious about actually trying them, given that they seemed theoretical. The last pages veered into the early thoughts about Edward’s manifesto.

“Any chance you’ve got that third journal on you, Scratch?” Sabrina asked once they had exhausted the contents of the second volume.

“Unfortunately, that one is still in the sanctum,” Nick said. “I was nearly finished replicating it when Cassius came around the corner with a text he thought I might like. I’ll get my hands on it soon though.” He smirked. “I wouldn’t want to disappoint my favorite witch.”

Sabrina rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

“Just don’t get kicked out of the Academy in the process,” she advised.

“I’ve got incentive to stick around,” he countered with that crooked grin of his that she could no longer deny was attractive.

“I should get home,” she said with a note of regret. “I’ve got a ton of homework tonight.”

“If you need a tutor…”

“I’ll ask Ambrose,” Sabrina said pointedly. “But thank you for your continued willingness to break the rules and get my father’s journals out of the sanctum. It really does mean a lot to me, Nick.”

Nick saw his opportunity.

“If you wanted to thank me, Lupercalia is coming up,” he ventured.

“Oh?” Sabrina raised an eyebrow.

“It’s this coming weekend in fact,” he continued. “What you say, Spellman? You interested? Or is Lupercalia one of the practices of the establishment you have a problem with?”

Sabrina’s lips quirked a bit as his reference to her tendency to take a stand.

“I’m into the spirit of Lupercalia,” she told him. “But only if I get to experience it with someone special. I was matched with Adam last year. Suffices to say it was not special.”

“Maybe I could be that someone special,” Nick hinted.

“We would have to get matched,” Sabrina reminded him.

“You leave that to me, Spellman,” Nick said with a confident grin. Sabrina returned his smile.

“Thank you for the hot chocolate – and the book club.”

“Anything for you,” Nick replied. “You’ve actually got a bit…” He reached out and used his thumb to wipe at the corner of her mouth. There was no chocolate there, but he felt compelled to touch her soft skin and it was a reasonable excuse. “There you go.”

His hand fell away, but their eyes remained locked. His tongue darted out and wetted his lips. He wanted to kiss her. Her red lips were calling to him like a siren. Instead he exhaled a breath and forced himself to break eye contact. He had to be a gentleman.

“See you at school tomorrow?” she asked. Nick dared to think she sounded hopeful.

“Absolutely,” he assured her. “Try to stay out of trouble in the meantime?”

“Right back at you,” Sabrina quipped.

Outside, Nick refrained from offering to walk her home as they parted ways. The afternoon had gone so well that he didn’t want to jinx anything. Besides, he had a Lupercalia matching to rig.

Back at the Academy, he wound his way to the dining hall for dinner. He settled at a table by himself – his preferred way of eating unless, apparently, it was lunchtime and Sabrina was around – but he was quickly joined by Prudence, Agatha, and Dorcas.

“What?” he asked wearily.

“Is that any way to greet us, Nicky?” Prudence replied. “We simply thought we would keep you company.”

“We can catch up,” Dorcas added. “We have hardly seen you since you got here.”

“Ever think to stop and ask yourself why?” Nick countered.

“Don’t be like that,” Agatha cooed. “You know we have so much fun when we’re all together.”

“I know the three of you have fun,” Nick corrected. “I’m not sure what I do under my own power and what you make me do under yours.”

“We would never make you do something you wouldn’t enjoy,” Dorcas said in what Nick thought was supposed to be a flirtatious manner.

“Nicky hasn’t been around because he’s been too busy chasing after Sabrina Spellman,” Prudence accurately stated. “But Nicky, I do believe you are running out of time to win our little wager.”

“I still have two weeks,” he stated.

“What wager?” Agatha wanted to know.

Nick realized the sisters didn’t know about their bet. He wished he could have kept it that way. They would surely interfere, and he had enough on his plate without trying to keep them at bay as well.

“Nicky here is so confident that he can get Sabrina Spellman into bed that we placed a friendly bet on the matter,” Prudence informed them.

“Prudence…” Nick warned.

“I have no doubt that this will be the easiest bet I’ve ever won,” she finished.

“And if any of you interfere, there will be Heaven to pay,” he warned. “I’m making progress with her, and I won’t have the three of you mess it up.”

“We won’t need to interfere,” Dorcas said with a self-assured attitude. “She’s not going to give it up. She believes in things like _love_ and we all know love is for delusional mortals that have nothing else to hang on to.”

“Stay out of it,” Nick said again. “I don’t want her to get hurt.”

He heard the hypocrisy of his words. Nothing about this would end well. Sabrina would get hurt regardless and the idea of that made his stomach roll. He found he was no longer hungry.

“She’s involved with you,” Prudence pointed out. “She’s doomed to her fate.”

“Stay out of it,” Nick said one more time as he rose to his feet. “You know I have no qualms about cursing any one of you within an inch of your life.”

He left them, his temper bubbling, his thoughts swirling.

He didn’t understand Sabrina.

At first, it made sense. She was beautiful and he was attracted to beauty. Her fiery personality was attractive too. He liked that she was strong-willed, sharp-witted. With the exception of her and the Weird Sisters, he had noted most of the witches at the Academy were more subdued, content to follow the rules and do what was expected of him, which was little under Blackwood’s rule. But unlike the Weird Sisters, there was a softer side of Sabrina, a side he was learning was kind, gentle. He had felt it when the sea demon attacked and again when they were hanging out after the bees stung her. He had certainly felt it earlier, sitting across from her with hot chocolate and hanging on her every word.

Making a bet with Prudence – making a bet at all – was a recipe for disaster. Prudence only played to win, and she wouldn’t make it easy on him to back out. He didn’t really want to. His pride had gotten him in plenty of trouble, and the idea of backing down from Prudence wasn’t appealing. He wanted to win.

Yet he also didn’t want to hurt Sabrina.

Another thing he didn’t understand.

He couldn’t recall a time in which he had thought of someone else’s feelings aside from his own. A small voice reminded him of how he had cursed the bully teasing Sabrina’s mortal friend, but he dismissed it. That wasn’t caring for someone else’s feelings. That was just common sense as far as he was concerned. He prioritized himself, always. Whether or not Sabrina got hurt shouldn’t matter to him. And yet the idea of it, the nagging feeling that he was in the wrong, just wouldn’t leave him alone. It followed him, pulled at him. The more he tried to ignore it, the harder it pulled.

He needed a distraction.

In the past, he would go find a warm body. That didn’t feel like the solution right now, however. He needed to move his body, but he also needed to exhaust his brain. He had learned his brain could continue to spin out of control long after his body was fatigued. If he wanted any piece, he needed to wear his brain out. He had once read that mortals exercised to relieve stress. He decided to do a little exercise of his own – practicing conjuring and banishing demons for a couple of hours would do it for him.

He made a pit stop by his room to gather a few supplies in his messenger bag before slipping quietly through the Academy in route for the dungeons. Dinner service was finishing up and while there was no hard and fast rule, students were expected to retire to their dorms or to the library to study. They were, however, absolutely not supposed to be in the dungeons – exactly why Nick chose them for practicing some of his riskier spells.

While he was sure he was alone, he still stuck to the shadows as he walked through the dark, cold halls below the school. As he approached the end of a hall, he heard voices. He stopped in his tracks and listened.

“This is only half,” came a gruff voice.

“You will get the rest when the job is done.” Nick’s eyes widened. He knew that voice. It belonged to Blackwood. “The _complete_ job.”

“This is not the bargain…”

Nick pinned himself against the wall and crept closer. He peered around the corner to find Blackwood standing tall and imposing over an older, stumpy man.

“It’s this or nothing,” Blackwood growled. “I’m sparing you and your so-called family in exchange for your loyalty. The rest of your payment will be provided when your contract is satisfied.”

“And you are holding up your end of this supposed bargain?” the man shot back.

“Of course I am,” Blackwood scoffed. “Now get out of my sight and get to work. I have been patient for a long time. I won’t be patient much longer, not when the pieces are finally falling into place.”

There was movement. Nick was quick to duck into an open dungeon. He slipped to the back, disappearing into the darkness. He held his breath, daring not to breathe as Blackwood stormed past. He heard footsteps echoing in the other direction as well.

He stood there, motionless, for several minutes, until he was sure he was alone once more. He crept to the dungeon’s door and peeked left and right before he chanced stepping out of it. He knew the smart thing would have been to return to his quarters and pretend like nothing had ever happened.

Instead, he followed in the direction of the second set of footsteps, searching. He found himself at a dead end. To most, it was no more than that – a hall that ended in a sturdy rock wall. He knew better, however. He used a spell to search the wall. A stone vibrated.

“Aha,” he said to himself. He put his hand on it and pushed. It faded away, taking the stones surrounding it with it, to reveal a long tunnel that he was willing to bet came out somewhere outside of the Academy. He wavered for a moment about following it but thought better of it. He stepped back and watched as the wall re-sealed itself. He had more questions than answers, but there was one question that trumped them all.

“What are you up to, Blackwood?” he wondered. “And why do I have a feeling it has to do with the Spellmans?”

* * *

“Aunt Zelda, you’re here.”

“I do live here,” Zelda replied. “Am I not allowed to sit in my own living room and enjoy a cup of evening tea?”

“It’s just that you have hardly been home in recent weeks,” Sabrina said. “You have been spending all of your time at the Academy.” She took a seat on an armchair and gave her aunt a critical look. “Why is that, anyway?”

“Lady Blackwood’s pregnancy is very high risk,” Zelda said in a superior manner. “I’m doing everything I can to ensure she delivers those twins safely and healthfully.”

“Why?”

“Why?” Zelda repeated. “Because there are children at stake, Sabrina. Blackwood blood or not, those babies are innocent.”

“That’s not what I mean,” Sabrina shook her head. “Why is Blackwood so invested in those babies? What’s his plan for them?”

“Any man would be invested in the health and well-being of their wife and children…”

“Not Blackwood,” Sabrina said stubbornly. “He only cares about himself. Lady Blackwood is a means to an end. Do you honestly think he would care so much if those twins were girls?”

Zelda took her time forming her answer. Her niece was absolutely correct. If Constance were pregnant with girls, she had no doubt he would have been far less involved and had even less concern over whether the babies were born healthy. She too was certain Blackwood had ulterior motives. She was working diligently to figure out what they were, but she didn’t want Sabrina to know that.

“For better or worse, Blackwood is a man who subscribes to the belief that he needs a male heir. Constance has lost a number of pregnancies. She needs these babies to be born alive and well even more than Faustus thinks he needs an heir.”

“He is going to destroy those babies,” Sabrina said. “He is going to fill their little brains with his dangerous rhetoric and use them to further his sexist agenda for generations to come.”

“You’re putting quite a lot of stock in babies that haven’t been born yet,” Zelda mused.

“Tell me I’m wrong,” Sabrina challenged. Zelda pursed her lips. Her niece was absolutely correct. “It’s disgusting, Auntie. I don’t want anything to happen to them – they’re innocent babies – but those poor kids are doomed from the start.”

“They will have Constance as a mother,” Zelda offered. “She will do her best to give them as normal of a childhood as she can.”

“She will have her work cut out for her.” Sabrina quipped. Zelda could only bob her head slightly in agreement. She decided to change the subject.

“Lupercalia is this weekend. Will you be participating this year?”

“Like last year, I’m interested in the idea of it,” Sabrina said diplomatically. “We will see how the matching goes.”

“Maybe you will get matched with that handsome Scratch boy,” Zelda implied.

“I guess that’s up for the matching to decide,” Sabrina stated.

“Hmm,” Zelda hummed knowingly. “And if you were matched with Nicholas?”

“That… Remains to be seen,” Sabrina said diplomatically. “You know I’m not the kind of girl to just – do that. I want my first time to be special.”

“Why didn’t you and Harvey ever consummate your relationship?” Zelda wondered. “You say you want your first time to be special and Harvey was your first love after all.”

“We talked about it,” Sabrina shrugged. She had never been embarrassed to talk about sex with her aunts. They had only ever been supportive, encouraged her to follow her heart, and answered the questions she came to them with – although she usually reserved her questions for Hilda, given Zelda’s lack of tact. “We came close a few times, but it just never felt right.”

“Well, no matter,” Zelda said. “You’re a smart girl. You will know when the time is right. Although if you do happen to get matched with one Nicholas Scratch…”

“You’re pushing me to him, Hilda is warning me away from him,” Sabrina observed. She thought about what Hilda had told her about warlocks. She wanted Zelda’s opinion. “Auntie, are all warlocks really as devilish and philandering as Hilda claims?”

“Of course not,” she stated. “Some of them are, of course, just like some mortal boys are. Many of them do like to have a bit of, shall we say, fun? when they are young. Your father, for instance, had his fair share of lovers over the centuries. But when he met your mother, he left all of that behind. Remember, Sabrina, warlocks have many hundreds of years ahead of them. Whereas mortals have a short window in which they can have their escapades, warlocks – and witches – can sew their oats for centuries before they settle down.”

“Hilda just seems so set on all warlocks being horrible,” Sabrina said. “She had her heart broken, didn’t she?”

“She did,” Zelda nodded. “His name was Rupert Pallela. He was a handsome Spaniard warlock. He spun tails of marriage and adventure and Hilda was head over heels. He simply disappeared one day and when he finally re-appeared two months only, it was only to collect his things and tell Hilda he had grown bored of her.”

“That’s awful!” Sabrina exclaimed.

“Your aunt was devastated,” Zelda nodded. “Suffices to say he did a number on her. It took her a very long time to go on a date with anyone. The woman had a thing for Cee for at least two years before she finally did anything about it.”

“You helped with that,” Sabrina reminded her aunt of the glamour she had placed on Hilda to help her confidence with Cee nearly a year ago now.

“I did,” Zelda said in a self-satisfied sort of manner. “Don’t let Hilda’s take on warlocks sway your opinion of them, Sabrina. While I do agree that most of them do have a bit of a dangerous streak to them, they aren’t all bad. At the risk of sounding like the romantic I’m not, it typically simply takes them meeting the right person to settle down.” She smiled a bit. “Like your father.”

“My parents really were in love, weren’t they?” It wasn’t a question. She had always known, without a doubt, that her parents were in love.

“They were,” Zelda answered anyway. “A true story of opposites attract if there ever was one.” She glanced at Sabrina. “You know you don’t have to follow in their footsteps, don’t you? Whether you fall in love with a mortal or a warlock doesn’t matter. You don’t have to be with a mortal, just because your father is who he was.”

“I know,” Sabrina nodded. She could admit she had turned that idea over in her head, if she should be with a mortal simply on principle. But she knew her parents wouldn’t have wanted that for her. They wouldn’t have wanted her to settle. “What about you, Auntie? Any past lovers that have left you jaded?”

“Not jaded, no,” Zelda shook her head. Sabrina leaned forward, eager to hear more. Zelda wasn’t always forthcoming with information. When she was in a talking mood, especially about her personal life, Sabrina always tried to push for more. “There were a couple of witches that made their impression, to be sure.”

“Oh?” Sabrina prompted.

“A woman named Lilith,” Zelda said with a faraway sort of look in her eye.

“Lilith? As in ‘Mother of Demons?’”

“She wasn’t _that_ Lilith,” Zelda stated as though the idea was utterly unfathomable. “Although she did have a certain thing for demons. And of course, there was Mambo Marie…”

“Sounds exotic,” Sabrina quipped. Zelda’s lips twitched.

“She was.”

Sabrina raised her eyebrows in a scandalized way.

“No warlocks?” she wondered, aware of her aunt’s preferences. She had caught her just twice sneaking lovers in and out of the house many years earlier, one a witch, the other a warlock.

“None of importance,” Zelda stated. “Now enough about all of this past loves discussion. I’m sure you have homework?”

“Plenty,” Sabrina said begrudgingly. “Hilda’s out?”

“We’re fending for ourselves,” Zelda confirmed. “Ambrose acted as though he had lost an arm when he came downstairs and realized he would have to make his own sandwich for dinner.”

“He would never survive on his own,” Sabrina stated. She let the room and stopped by the kitchen where she popped a bag of popcorn while she assembled herself a mixed plate of crackers, cheese, and apple slices. She maneuvered it all upstairs and settled on her bed to begin an essay for rituals.

She worked diligently, nibbling at her makeshift dinner while she scribbled a note here, marked a page there. She frowned as she worked, her concentration entirely on her essay. Salem’s meow broke through her focus. Before she could ask him what he wanted, there was a knock on her door.

“Come in!” she called, figuring it was one of her aunts or perhaps Ambrose, although he rarely knocked. Her door opened. “Nick!”

“Hey,” he greeted with an uncertain sort of smile. “Got a minute?”

“Um, sure,” Sabrina agreed as she stood to greet him. “What’s up?”

“Two things.” Nick reached into his jacket. “First, this.” He held out the third of her father’s journals and the smile on her face was worth the late evening visit. “I thought it best to get it out of the Academy instead of keeping it in my room overnight.”

“Thank you,” Sabrina said with just as much sincerity as she had when he gave her the first one. “How did you…?” Only hours ago he had said he didn’t have it yet.

“I ended up back in the sanctum after dinner. Cassius must trust me, because he drifted off – no need for me to come up with a text I needed him to fetch to distract him while I replicated it.”

“Using that charm for good I see,” Sabrina quipped. Nick chuckled. “What’s the second thing?”

Nick shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. He had debated about whether or not he should come over and tell her what he had found in the dungeon, but once he got his hands on Edward’s journal, it felt like the question had been answered for him.

“What do you know about secret passages in and out of the Academy?”

“I know they exist,” Sabrina said cautiously. “There is one in the kitchen that leads to the dungeons. They say a cook made it centuries ago so she could sneak food down to prisoners. The other one is in the library and leads outside. It was closed off ages ago after a witch got killed by a mortal when she snuck out after curfew.”

“What about in the dungeons?” Nick asked. “Know anything about passages down there?”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “I’ve only been down there a few times, and never because I wanted to be down there.” She eyed him. “Why?”

“Mind if I close the door?” he countered. Sabrina nodded her agreement, her suspicion rising. “I went down there after dinner to practice conjuring demons,” he said as casually as one reported on the weather once the door was secured.

“You casually practice conjuring demons?” Sabrina interjected.

“Mortals exercise, I conjure,” he shrugged. “I heard voices. I knew one was Blackwood’s. I peeked around the corner and saw him talking to a squat old man. Blackwood gave him money – half of what he was owed based on the conversation I overhead – and said he would get the rest of it when the job was done. I had to hide in a cell to keep from being seen, but Blackwood left alone. When he was gone, I followed the man’s footsteps in the opposite direction. He disappeared through a secret passage at the end of one of the halls.”

“Where did it lead to?” Sabrina asked. “Who was the old man? What else did you overhear?”

“One question at a time, Spellman,” Nick said with a hint of a smile. “Honestly? I didn’t get much. Just confirmation that Blackwood is, in fact, up to something.”

Sabrina sighed and made to sit on her bed. Nick stood awkwardly, watching her. She noted that he looked uncomfortable and wondered if he had ever felt uncomfortable in a room with a witch before.

“You can sit down,” she told him. “This bed is big enough for the both of us.”

Nick said nothing, but cautiously approached her wrought iron bed. Unbidden, images of what he could do to her in that bed played through his mind. But so did a wave of nervousness he wasn’t used to. Being alone with a witch or warlock in a bedroom wasn’t an unusual place for him. But Sabrina’s bedroom felt different. It felt – untouchable. He settled next to her and leaned against the headboard. She positioned herself to face him.

“So, Blackwood is up to something?” she prompted.

“He is absolute up to something,” Nick confirmed. “Blackwood told the man he would get the rest of his payment when the complete job was done and that he was, in turn, protecting the man’s ‘so called family.’”

“Complete job,” Sabrina repeated. “It sounds like Blackwood has hired him for something big.”

“Agreed,” Nick nodded. “What? I have no idea.”

“Who was the guy?” Sabrina wondered.

“No one I’ve ever seen before and from what little I did see of him, he looks like someone meant to slip through the shadows. He’s a criminal if I’ve ever seen one.”

“Was he a warlock?”

“I don’t know,” Nick shook his head. “From what I know about Blackwood, I would be hard pressed to think otherwise. If that man wasn’t a warlock, he was something else with dark DNA.”

“Where does that passage go?” Sabrina asked, wheels turning.

“No idea…”

“You didn’t follow him?”

“As curious as I was about where it went, following an unknown man who has been paid to do something for Blackwood into a secret tunnel that ends who knows where when no one knew I was in the dungeons in the first place felt like a pretty bad idea, Spellman.”

“True,” Sabrina admitted. She recognized she would have likely followed the man, given her tendency to act first and think later. Nick had at least topped to think. “But we need to figure out where it goes.”

“How do you suggest we do that?” Nick asked. Sabrina opened her mouth. “Don’t say we follow it,” he said before she could. “That’s a terrible idea. We don’t know what’s in there or where it goes. It’s foolish to follow it blindly.”

Sabrina bit her lip, annoyed that he was right.

“Maybe we can do some digging,” she suggested. “There are books on the history of the Academy. I’d bet any mention of secret passages out of the Academy would be in books kept in the Sanctum.”

“I’m on it,” Nick promised. He picked at her quilt, preparing to make another confession. “I also think whatever Blackwood is up to has to do with your family.”

“Why?” Sabrina wanted to know.

“Blackwood paying someone off at the same time you’re having demonic creatures sent after you?” Nick pointed out. “Roz’s weird episode might have been coincidental, but this? This can’t be a coincidence.”

“No,” Sabrina realized. “It cannot.” Her mind raced. “And his twins… He’s too interested in them. I know it’s his legacy, but I can’t shake the feeling that those babies are part of whatever he’s up to.”

“That I don’t know about,” Nick said. “You will have more knowledge there, given your relationship to Zelda.”

“We are probably sticking our noses somewhere it shouldn’t be,” Sabrina warned.

“I’m under the impression that’s never stopped you before,” Nick told her. “And I’ve never exactly been one to follow the rules either.”

“I don’t want to drag you into something…”

“Trust me, Spellman, I don’t do anything I don’t want to do. I’m in this. Besides, that damned cecaelia attacked me too.”

“Fair,” Sabrina agreed. “I don’t know where to start though. We have gotten nowhere researching.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Nick assured her. He gave her a little half smirk. “I have a feeling you and I are going to be one Heaven of a team, Spellman.” Sabrina rolled her eyes, but Nick noted the smile that played at the edges of her lips all the same, just as it had at Dorian’s earlier.

“Who let you in?” she wondered.

“Ambrose. He directed me upstairs.” Sabrina picked up the journal.

“Thanks for bringing this with you. I really do appreciate you doing this, risking getting caught in the name of getting my dad’s journals.”

“It’s starting to look like I might do anything for you, Spellman,” he said. “Steal your dad’s journals, get attacked by demons, look into Blackwood’s schemes…” He grinned a bit. “Make my mom’s hot chocolate.”

Sabrina felt that warm feeling from earlier again. It was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the fact that she was attracted to Nick. It was becoming even more difficult to remember why she shouldn’t be in the first place.

“It was good hot chocolate,” she offered with a shy smile.

“It was okay,” he agreed and Sabrina laughed. He smiled at the sound. “The company was better.”

The air did that thing where it charged around them. They had both noticed it, felt it, even. Nick cleared his throat and shifted on the bed. He wondered why he felt this way, nervous, uncertain. Sabrina was just a girl, no more, no less. Girls didn’t make him nervous, even ones that also happened to be powerful witches.

“I should go,” he hedged. “It’s getting late and it looks like you have some homework to do.”

“I do,” Sabrina agreed. “Thanks for coming over, Nick.”

“It wasn’t a bad way to end my night,” he said as he forced himself to stand from her bed.

“I’ll walk you out,” she decided.

Together, they made their way downstairs. Sabrina followed him out to the porch.

“You’re teleporting back to the Academy, right?” she asked. “It would be smart, given everything that’s happened lately…”

“Like I’d walk,” he stated. But he winked, letting her know he was joking. “See you at school tomorrow?”

“I’ll see you at school tomorrow,” Sabrina nodded.

Still, Nick didn’t walk away. Instead, he reached out and caught her hand in his. He felt that increasingly familiar jolt of electricity as he held it lightly in his. His thumb brushed across the back of it. Her eyes met his and for a moment, she thought he might kiss her.

“Goodnight, Spellman,” he offered instead. She smiled a bit.

“Goodnight, Scratch.”

Again, she stood on the porch and watched Nick cross the yard. And again, he turned and winked at her before he disappeared. She blew out a long breath and wondered what was going on – with both Blackwood _and_ her bubbling attraction to Nick.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there's that whole mystery man in the dungeons with Blackwood thing and Nick being certain Blackwood is up to something thing. And a lovely, insightful chat with Zelda. But I think it suffices to say these two crazy kids might well be full on falling. My opinion? Illicit bookclub looked a lot like a date... 
> 
> Who do you think was in the hallway? And what are they up to? 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Lupercalia - and maybe we'll finally get that kiss?

Nick wasn’t sure he liked the trajectory of where things were going, but there was no backing out now. He slipped through the dungeon hallways as quiet as he could, but this time, Sabrina was with him. She was quiet as a mouse, her body close to his as they maneuvered through the shadows. He had to refrain from reaching back to grab her hand, make sure she stayed close. He didn’t like this at all and yet when she found him before classes the previous morning and pitched her idea, he had agreed readily.

“We’re almost there,” he said over his shoulders. Sabrina only nodded.

He led her to the place where the man Blackwood had met with had disappeared.

“This is it?” she clarified.

“This is it,” Nick nodded. “You’re sure about this?”

“I am.” She lifted the flap of her bag and Salem leapt out of it with a protesting meow. “Oh hush,” she hissed. “I had to sneak you in here somehow.” She returned her attention to Nick. “The question is – can you open this thing?”

“I can,” Nick nodded with confidence. He wasn’t actually sure, but he didn’t want to portray that to her. He took a deep breath and began his spell. It was easy – too easy – for the stones to roll away and reveal a long, dark passage. It was either meant to be found or believed to be so well hidden that there was no need to make it difficult to access. “Here you have it.”

“Okay,” Sabrina nodded as she took in the opening before her. “Salem? You’re up.” The familiar gave her a side eye, but dutifully marched into the tunnel. She and Nick stood side-by-side and watched until he disappeared from view. “Now what?”

“We wait,” Nick shrugged. A thought occurred to him. He caught her hand in his and tugged. “Come on.” She allowed him to lead her away from the opening. She balked, however, when he reached the door of the nearest dungeon. “Sabrina?”

“I’m not going in there,” she stated.

“We have to hide,” Nick explained. “On the off-chance Blackwood or one of his Judas Boys comes down here, we can’t be caught casually standing around in the halls of the dungeons.”

“But… In one of the cells?”

“Where else do you suppose we hide?” Nick countered, pointing out the obvious for her – it was the only place that would keep them out of the hallway.

“It’s just…”

“Spit it out, Spellman,” Nick encouraged when she trailed off. “I know dungeons aren’t especially fun, but I feel like there is something more at work here.” Sabrina sighed, hating how easily he had read her.

“I spent the night in the witch’s cell,” she nodded in the direction of it at the far end of the hallway. “The Weird Sisters were harrowing me. It was awful. I came out of it a lot stronger than they expected me to, but ever since, I made a solemn vow to steer clear of these things.”

Nick caught her hand once more.

“I’m not harrowing you though, am I?” He tugged gently. “We’ll leave the door open. Come hide with me.”

Sabrina decided in the moment she trusted him. He hadn’t, so far, given her a reason not to. Quite the opposite, actually. He had been keen to help her with Batibat, quick on his feet when the sea demon attacked, and, dared she admit it, sweet when the demonic bees appeared. She allowed him to lead her into the dungeon. They settled on a bench to wait.

“I wonder how long Salem will be gone?” she said.

“All we can do is wait.” Nick leaned against the wall, content to do just that. “So… Lupercalia.”

“What about it?” Sabrina countered.

“You really don’t have anything against it?” he wondered. “One could argue it’s a rather sexist tradition, given what’s expected.”

“I like the idea of it,” Sabrina admitted. “I suppose it’s because Lupercalia reminds me a bit of mortal Valentine’s Day.”

“Mortals have a day devoted to sex?” Nick asked. “Who knew they had it in them?” Sabrina had to smile.

“Not quite,” she shook her head. “It’s a day that, at the risk of sounding cheesy, celebrates love. Significant others get each other sappy gifts, there are flowers and chocolates, stuffed animals, things like that. Lots of hearts and pinks and reds. Ambrose calls it a manufactured holiday and I suppose he’s right, but I’ve always liked it.”

“I don’t understand how Lupercalia translates into that. Lupercalia is not meant for celebrating love. There certainly aren’t hearts and flowers.”

“It’s the idea of it,” Sabrina tried to explain. “The connection between two people. That concept is the same, whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day or Lupercalia.”

Nick started to understand which only inspired more questions.

“So, personal question then. What happened at Lupercalia last year? Because frankly, Spellman, you don’t seem like the kind of girl to just sleep with anyone.” He was working hard to forget that fact as he attempted to pursue her into doing just that with him.

“I didn’t go through with it,” Sabrina admitted. “I was matched with Adam of all people.” She shot Nick a glance and he had the good sense to avert his eyes. “I made it through the first two nights, but on the third night…”

“He wasn’t someone special,” Nick finished. He gave her a serious look. “Just so you know, I won’t push you. We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.” He found he meant that down to his bones, bet be damned. In another scenario, he might have tried other tactics, attempted to change the mind of the object of his affection. He would never force himself on someone, but he couldn’t admit he wouldn’t have tried to swing things. He wouldn’t do that with Sabrina. “You’re in charge of what happens.”

Sabrina gave him the look he was beginning to associate with her assessing him. She looked at him like that when she dissected his words or actions. She nearly always accurately called him out on whatever there was to call out. It made him uncomfortable that she could see through him so easily.

“We have to be matched first,” she finally said. Nick smiled at her.

“Leave that to me, Spellman.” He took a chance and reached for her hand. He liked how it felt in his. “I’ve got this covered.”

“Rigging the matching?” she asked.

“The less you know the better,” he teased. He noted she hadn’t pulled her hand out of his. He cautiously rubbed small circles on the back of her dainty hand. “Really, Sabrina, I won’t push you. I just want you to know that ahead of all the festivities.”

“Like I said, we have to be matched first.” There was a softness to the way she was looking at him and he found he wanted her to look at him like that again. “Since we’ve got some time to just sit here… What have you been studying?”

Nick was off, telling her about some the intricate conjuring spells and rituals he had read about. She couldn’t help but notice how he lit up when he talked about magic, how he seemed so passionate about the details of spells that went over her head. By the time he paused to take a breath, she was smiling brightly. It lit up the dark dungeon. Along with her porcelain skin and her moonlight blonde hair, she was her own light.

She was his light.

“What?” he asked.

“Have you ever considered teaching?”

Nick frowned.

“Teaching?”

“You know, standing before a classroom, sharing your knowledge with the next generation of witches and wizards.”

“No,” Nick admitted. “I haven’t really thought much about what I’m going to do with my life.”

“Just that you don’t want to waste your talent,” Sabrina remembered. “You should think about teaching, Nick. I think you would be great at it.”

Nick didn’t reply right away. Something about the suggestion warmed him. It wasn’t so much the idea of teaching as it was the obvious vote of confidence from Sabrina. It was one thing to know he was good at magic. It was another for someone – someone like Sabrina – to encourage him to use it for something like teaching.

“I suppose it’s a career path to consider,” he said diplomatically.

“Or,” she continued, “Blackwood did mention you as High Priest…” Nick shook his head.

“I don’t think that’s the role for me. I’m not that guy.”

“What guy?” she wondered.

“That guy,” Nick said again. “The one who leads, who guides. I can’t see myself leading Black Mass or overseeing a coven.”

“Why not?” Sabrina pressed. “Granted, you’re a little reckless at the moment, but in time, I think you have the talent to pull it off.”

Again, Nick felt warm, despite the mention of his reckless nature. She wasn’t wrong about that after all. Still, he shook his head.

“My dad was High Priest of our coven,” he revealed. “I was young, but I remember what it was like for him. That’s not a job I want.”

Sabrina was surprised by this revelation. It was something else they had in common – orphaned, children of High Priests. She could tell Nick came from a wealthier background. It was in the way he carried himself. Most witch families tended to be well off however. They carried their possessions through centuries, built upon them, passed them down through generations. Given his devil-may-care attitude, she wouldn’t have pegged him as the son of a High Priest however. Then again, she reasoned she should have – as the daughter of one, she certainly broke her own fair share of rules.

“How long was he in service?” she wondered.

“Fifty years or so,” Nick shrugged. “In a twisted way, I get why Blackwood is so keen on twin sons. I was meant to be his successor.” He looked at Sabrina. “I bet your father would have wanted you to succeed him.”

“I’m a witch,” Sabrina reminded him. “There has never been a High Priestess.”

“The hierarchy of Hell wouldn’t like it, but I imagine your dad would have made it perfectly acceptable for a woman to be in a position of power should he have lived.” He gave Sabrina a smile. “I think you would make a great High Priestess.”

He was surprised when Sabrina shook her head as had.

“I don’t want to preside over people,” she shared. “I want to lead people, show them what’s possible. You can’t do that when you’re in charge. You spend your days delegating, not doing. It’s more about appearance and less about affecting change.”

Nick studied her, rightly impressed.

“That was pretty profound, Spellman,” he said after a beat. She shrugged a shoulder.

“I’ve thought about it a lot,” she offered. She realized then that he was still holding her hand. She didn’t pull away. “Look at us. Two kids of High Priests, neither interested in following in our father’s footsteps.”

“And yet we still want to do something great with our lives,” Nick mused. “Maybe we’re more like our fathers than we realize.”

Their eyes met. His gaze drifted down to her lips. He could kiss her. He wanted to kiss her. Her tongue darted out and licked her lips and he wanted to taste her red lipstick all that much more. He leaned in a bit. She did the same. Both moved incrementally slow. She closed her eyes.

A meow echoed down the hall.

Sabrina’s eyes flew open as Nick pulled back.

“Salem!”

She was out of the cell before Nick could register what had happened. He exhaled a breath and gave his head a shake before he followed her. She was fussing over the familiar, assuring herself that he was okay.

“Well?” Nick prompted. “What’s the report?”

“Salem?” Sabrina asked. “Where did the passage lead?” Nick listened as the familiar let loose a chorus of meows. “He said it leads to the mines,” she interpreted. “He didn’t see anything odd or out of place. It just comes out deep in the mines.”

“The mines?” Nick questioned.

“There have been rumors for years about miners hearing things, seeing things they can’t explain,” Sabrina told him. “It’s always been chalked up to the fact that the mines are old and deep. Even my aunts have dismissed the stories as fiction more than fact.” She chewed her lip for a moment. “But maybe not. Maybe there’s something to it.”

“We’re going into those mines, aren’t we?” Nick asked. Sabrina noted the spark of adventure in his brown eyes. She felt the same spark in the pit of her stomach.

“I think we have to,” she nodded. “But not tonight.” She smiled at him. “We have the matching ritual to get to.”

“Followed by our first night of Lupercalia,” Nick replied, feeling excitement starting to bubble. With any luck, he hoped he would finally kiss her later that night. He found that was all he wanted – to kiss her. Other stuff could wait.

He checked to ensure the passage had closed itself while Sabrina negotiated with Salem to get back into her bag until she could release him outside to return to the mortuary. When he was secured, they set off back through the dungeons to return above ground. Nick startled when something brushed against his hand, but he quickly settled into a wide smile.

Sabrina Spellman had reached for his hand.

He intertwined their fingers, content not to let her go.

* * *

Sabrina half listened as Blackwood drawled on about the rules of the matching ceremony. His grandstanding was for his benefit. It was a chance for him to remind the coven who was in charge. Personally, Sabrina didn’t think it was that hard to hold a ribbon and more or less walk around in a circle until the music stopped.

She glanced across the room as Blackwood went on. Her eyes found Nick’s. He wasn’t paying attention to Blackwood. He was looking at her. He gave her that half grin of his and winked. She had to fight her own smile as she looked away.

“Don’t even think about it,” came a voice. Sabrina rolled her eyes.

“Go away, Dorcas.”

“Nicholas is mine,” she continued in a low hiss. “My sisters and I decided.”

“Decided?” Sabrina asked. “Or fought to the brink of death?” She doubted there was anything resembling a sensible conversation between the three of them on the subject.

“He’s mine,” she said again. “Besides, we all know you aren’t going to put out, and he’s not the kind of warlock to, shall we say, go without.”

“You have to be matched with him first,” Sabrina couldn’t help but remind her.

“That’s for me to worry about, isn’t it?” Dorcas asked with a wicked grin. She drifted away, leaving Sabrina to huff out her annoyance. She didn’t put it past the Weird Sisters to try and manipulate the matching. Nick seemed to have his own agenda too. She decided she would just wait and see how things turned out. If he didn’t like the outcome, she would just go home. Dorcas was right about one thing – she very likely wasn’t going to be losing her virginity over the next three days, Nick or not.

“Warlocks, to your places!” Blackwood directed. Sabrina glanced up at the balcony he stood on and noted her aunt Zelda was there with him. She briefly wondered why before she was called to action. “Witches! Your places!”

Sabrina stepped forward and went to the nearest silk – which happened to be the one hanging behind Nick’s chair. He had sat down directly in front of her and she couldn’t help but wonder if that was on purpose. He winked at her as she took her place.

The music started and the witches began to twirl and dance. Truthfully, this was Sabrina’s favorite part of the festival. She thought it was pretty, elegant, even. It reminded her of the maypole dance the mortals did. She mentioned as much last year and the others had rolled her eyes and reminded her of her half-breed status. She twirled again, aware of Nick’s eyes following her. It was hard not to be aware – they burned into her, made her feel, she realized, beautiful. That was a new feeling – to be looked at with real desire. She liked it.

The music drew to a close. Like a game of mortal musical chairs, the witches scrambled into the warlock’s lap nearest them. Sheer luck had landed her right in front of Nick. She grinned as she approached him.

“He’s mine, Spellman!” Dorcas came out of nowhere and bodychecked her. She stumbled a few steps and glared at the redhaired witch as she settled into Nick’s lap with a satisfactory grin. He tossed Sabrina a regretful look as others around her teetered at her expense. She exhaled to hold onto her temper and searched for the remaining warlock, doing her best to hold onto her dignity.

“Hi, Melvin.”

She settled onto his lap half-heartedly. At least it was one of the few warlocks she trusted. He surely wouldn’t try to push her into anything. She thought she might even be able to talk him into skipping Lupercalia all together and heading back to the mortuary for horror movies and Hilda’s baked goods.

“Might want to get your eyesight checked out, Spellman.”

Sabrina gasped.

There, grinning at her like the cat that got the canary, was Nicholas Scratch.

“Nick…?”

A scream of indignation filled the space. Sabrina looked. It was Dorcas as she took in the warlock whose lap she was straddling suggestively – a lap that belonged to Melvin.

“Melvin!” she cried out.

“Nick paid me a hundred bucks to wear a glamour!” he exclaimed. Sabrina looked back to Nick in surprise. His hands went to her waist.

“Told you I had this handled,” he quipped. “As though the Weird Sisters are any match for me.”

Sabrina had to smile at him.

“Well orchestrated, Scratch.”

“Anything for you,” he quipped. “Have dinner with me?”

“Only because dinner is in the dining hall,” Sabrina said with a hint of a tease in her tone. Nick chuckled.

“I’ll take what I can get.”

Sabrina noted how Nick stayed close during dinner, how she found him waiting for her when she left him to freshen up. He caught her hand in his as the group of students walked into the woods for the start of the night’s festivities. She liked it. She felt her guard slipping away and she was sure there was nothing she could do to stop it. She didn’t think she wanted to. When the signal sounded, Nick, still with her hand in his, tugged her forward and led her into the woods, their picnic basket in his other hand.

“Is here okay?” he asked about fifteen minutes into their walk. Sabrina surveyed the small clearing. She could hear Sweetwater River bubbling nearby.

“Here is perfect,” she agreed.

For a few minutes, they busied themselves with spreading their blanket and emptying their picnic basket. When they finally faced each other, an awkwardness fell over them. They both knew what came next. Nick opened his mouth to offer Sabrina an out, but she moved first, slipping her leather jacket off her shoulders. She caught his eyes, then bent her knee to access the zipper on her tall boots. She daintily stepped out of it, then repeated the same movement on the other side.

Nick swallowed past an odd ball of something that had formed in his throat as he watched her begin to undress. He thought it might have been nerves, but nervous wasn’t a feeling he generally associated with himself. He unlaced his boots and toed out of them. His hands trembled slightly as unbuttoned his shirt. Sabrina covered up her own nervousness as she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head, leaving her in a silky camisole. Nick was shrugging out of his jacket when her camisole came off, leaving her in a lacy black bra.

Without breaking eye contact, Sabrina reached behind her to unzip her skirt. She let it fall to the ground. Nick fumbled a bit with the button of his pants as he watched her before he managed to undo it. His jeans fell away as well. Sabrina stepped out of her tights and Nick found it hard to breathe.

“You’re beautiful.”

The words came out rushed, nervous. But they were utterly truthful. Sabrina’s cheeks colored pink.

“Thank you,” she glanced away self-consciously. She had already noted his defined chest, the way his biceps flexed. He was gorgeous in his own right.

Without a word, Nick picked up what they needed for the ritual. Sabrina accepted the dagger he offered her. Together, they went through the motions, the tension lifting when Nick snickered at smearing blood on Sabrina’s forehead.

“This is kind of ridiculous,” he said.

“It really is,” Sabrina agreed. She used a towel to wipe the smudge from Nick’s forehead while he did the same for her.

“Now, we lay side by side and soak up the moonlight,” Nick quoted.

Together, they laid down on the blanket and looked up at the silky black sky.

“Kind of a lame moon tonight,” Sabrina mused. “Just a thumbnail.”

“A thumbnail?” Nick asked.

“It looks like a thumbnail,” she explained, holding her thumb up to the crescent moon to demonstrate her point. “See?”

“I have never thought about it like that, but I suppose you’re right,” Nick agreed. He watched Sabrina prop herself up on her elbows.

“Hungry?” she asked.

“We just had dinner…” He watched curiously as she pulled a container out of her bag. “What’s that?”

“Hilda sent brownies,” she said. “But if you’re full from dinner…”

“Pass those brownies,” Nick stated as he sat up. Sabrina laughed, removed the lid, and offered it to him. He was all too happy to take a brownie. He groaned when he bit into it. “Seriously. If Hilda and Cee don’t work out…”

Sabrina laughed again and took her own brownie.

“I’ll pass along the offer.”

“What’s in this thing?” he wondered. “It tastes like – well, something good and right, whatever that is.” He realized in the moment he couldn’t think of anything good or right. Not when so much of his life had been so dark.

“It’s double chocolate,” Sabrina told him, oblivious to his thoughts. “Dark and milk. And I would imagine some secret ingredient Hilda put in that she wouldn’t reveal under penalty of death.”

They ate their brownies while exchanging small talk, then got comfortable once more. They stargazed and didn’t say much for a while, both content. Nick kept sneaking peeks at Sabrina, taking in how the dim moonlight reflected off of her, the elegant curve of her neck, the dip at her waist. She was striking.

“Tell me something about yourself, Spellman,” he broke the silence. Sabrina turned her gaze to him.

“You know plenty about me,” she said. “You know I’m a half-breed…”

“Don’t call yourself that,” Nick stopped her. “You’re half witch, half mortal, and in my opinion? You’re the best parts of both halves. Don’t call yourself a half-breed.”

Sabrina’s entire body warmed.

“That’s – an observation.”

“No, it’s the truth.” Nick reached out. “You’ve got a bit of chocolate…” He wiped it away with a swipe of his thumb, thinking of how he had lied about the chocolate at Dorian’s a few days earlier, just to touch her. This time, he was telling the truth. “Seriously, tell me something about yourself. Something no one else knows.”

Sabrina considered the request, her eyes back on the sky. Nick did the same, his hands laced together behind his head while he waited.

“I can control the weather,” she admitted. Nick looked her way again.

“What?”

“I can control the weather,” she repeated. She twirled her finger. A moment later, a light snow started to fall around them. Nick chuckled and watched the flakes drift with a sense of wonder Sabrina found incredibly attractive. “The Weird Sisters weren’t wrong. The flooding after my breakup with Harvey really was a tropical storm, but if the mood strikes, I could whip up a tornado in an instant. Weather is a Spellman specialty.” She waved her hand and a light breeze blew away the snow. “Your turn, Scratch. Tell me something about yourself.”

Nick thought for a moment, not bothering to try to deny her request as he had the first time she asked.

“I used to sneak into my dad’s office and eavesdrop during his meetings,” he confessed. “There was a secret passage from the living room to his office. It was small. I doubt he could have fit through it, honestly. But I could, so I would creep through it and stop just before the exit in his office and listen through the vent. I overheard a lot I probably shouldn’t have.”

“You were a rule breaker even back then,” Sabrina mused.

“Always have been,” Nick agreed. “I thought I was getting away with it, but one day, after listening to one of the lower priests ramble about his thoughts on changes to make to the way the coven held Black Mass, my dad called out ‘Nicholas, what do you think?’ I was busted.” Sabrina laughed.

“Did you get in trouble?”

“No,” Nick shook his head. “Not really, anyway. He lectured me about eavesdropping, told me not to do it again, sent me to the kitchen to ask Mom for a cookie. I took a week or so off of sneaking through the passage, but the next time I did it, there was a chocolate bar waiting for me.”

“That’s sweet,” Sabrina smiled.

“I guess,” Nick nodded. He turned onto his side and lifted himself up on one elbow so he could see her better. He didn’t want to think about the happy memory. It would just put a damper on the evening to remember what he had lost. He noted the goosebumps on her ski thenn. “You’re cold.”

“I’m okay…”

“You’re freezing,” he corrected, noting he too was rather chilly. “Hang on.” He said a quick spell and a blanket appeared.

“Show off,” Sabrina muttered as he unfolded it. He saw her smile though and knew she teasing.

“I never miss a chance to show off for a pretty girl,” he said. Not a lie. He tossed the blanket over her. “Better?”

“Aren’t we supposed to be soaking in the moonlight?” she asked.

“Theoretically,” Nick agreed. “But do you honestly think anyone else is abiding by the rules? At least a few couples have packed up and gone home and more than a few have completely blown through the whole idea of abstaining tonight.”

Sabrina didn’t argue. She did, however, lift the blanket and offer its warmth to Nick. He hesitated for only a moment before he moved to join her under the blanket. He realized quickly that it was the right choice. It was warm, but he was also much closer to Sabrina. His hand found hers under the blanket and laced their fingers together.

“This is… Nice,” Sabrina admitted.

“It is, isn’t it?” Nick replied with a smile. “Maybe I’m not so bad after all?”

“As much as I hate to admit it, you’re growing on me,” she teased, using his words. He chuckled and moved in a little closer. She did the same. Their foreheads touched. Nick’s senses flooded with her.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked, his lips so close to hers they brushed ever so slightly against hers.

“Please,” she breathed.

When their lips connected, Sabrina forgot everything. She forgot that they were in the middle of the woods, that there was an unknown danger lurking out there somewhere, set on her, that she had told herself she would stay away from the warlock that was setting her on fire with just one kiss. All she knew was that she wanted more. She turned into him and placed a hand on his chest.

Nick felt her brand his heart with her dainty hand. He snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. He knew she could feel him against her hip, but there was nothing he could do about that tonight. He only wanted to kiss her. And so he did, for a long time. When they finally pulled apart, both were breathing heavy and warmed through.

“You’re wearing my lipstick,” Sabrina breathed. She used her thumb to wipe a smug away.

“Red might be my color,” Nick quipped. She giggled and he thought that was an incredibly beautiful sound. He pulled her into him, content to hold her. “Warm enough?”

“Very much so,” she assured him. She rested her head on his chest and Nick’s throat tightened at the intimate, trusting gesture. He held her close. His conscience nagged at him, told him to back out of the bet with Prudence now, to swallow his pride. The girl in his arms was, he realized, the first good and right thing he had known in a long time. He brought her still closer, one arm wrapped around her, the other playing with her hair as she drifted off to sleep.

He laid awake for a while longer, wrestling with feelings of guilt while relishing having her so close. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, and she sighed contently. He remembered then that they were in the middle of the woods, sitting ducks in every sense of the word. He whispered words of protection over her, then placed a protective barrier around them. He drifted off with her in his arms, content that they were safe.

Neither had any idea of the figure that appeared from the woods. They slept soundly as it prowled around them, trying and failing to get through the strength of the spell Nick had placed around them.

When morning came, it was as though nothing had changed.

Except, Sabrina noted as she woke up in the arms of a still sleeping Nick Scratch and smiled, everything had changed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think it suffices to say that night one of Lupercalia really did change everything. Maybe they didn't say the words out loud, but they have most certainly fallen for one another. We'll continue Lupercalia in the next update... 
> 
> Thank you for reading and loving on this story! Let me know what you thought of this one!


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lupercalia, part deux.

Sabrina felt – giddy.

That was the only word she could use to describe the way her stomach swooped whenever she thought about how soundly she had slept on the forest floor, buried under blankets and held tight in Nick’s arms. He had conjured another blanket when he woke up in the middle of the night and realized just how cold it was, and, she learned when she bravely shed the blanket to find her clothes, he had put a protective barrier around them so they could both sleep peacefully. They had ended up tangled up in one another once more, making out one more time before he walked her back to the mortuary. He had given her a chaste kiss on the lips at the gate, promised to see her that evening, smirked, winked, and disappeared.

“So?” Ambrose prompted.

“So what?” Sabrina countered. She had nearly forgotten that Ambrose was in the same room. He was sprawled across an armchair, eyes on her from where she was similarly draped across the sofa. He had Edward’s third journal in his hands. She was just – there.

“Last night was that good, huh?”

Sabrina made a face at him.

“We didn’t do anything,” she informed him. “You’re not meant to on the first night of Lupercalia anyway.” Ambrose snorted.

“Like people actual refrain from the pleasures of the flesh on night one.”

“Well, Nick and I did. We soaked in the moonlight and fell asleep.” Ambrose looked gleeful.

“You are lying so much right now,” he taunted. “You may not have done the deed, but you did more than just lay there.”

“We might have kissed,” Sabrina shrugged. “It was fine.”

“Fine?” Ambrose’s glee only grew. “I bet it was ‘fine.’”

“You’re the worst,” she informed him.

“I’m living vicariously through you,” Ambrose reminded her. “I want the details.”

“We kissed,” Sabrina repeated. She bit her lip for a moment. “A lot.”

Ambrose howled.

“I knew you would crack! That warlock is too damned good looking not to.”

“He’s handsome,” Sabrina agreed. “But he’s – different – than what I thought he would be.”

“How so?” Ambrose wanted to know.

“Well, he is certainly a bad boy,” she explained. “But there is something else there. He’s got a soft side. He keeps it buried down deep, but when he lets it show,” she shrugged a shoulder, “it feels more like who he actually is.”

“Oh you have it so bad,” Ambrose observed. “All that ‘I’m not getting involved with Nicholas Scratch’ has gone right out the window.”

“It’s casual,” Sabrina insisted. “We’re casual. Besides, he plans to leave Greendale after he turns eighteen, which is in like, two months. There’s no use in getting attached.”

”You have it so bad,” Ambrose said again.

“How about we change the subject?” Sabrina countered. “Find out anything interesting about mysterious breezes, sea demons, or hell-sent bees?”

“Nothing of use,” Ambrose admitted. “How about you? Or Nicholas?”

“Nothing of use,” Sabrina repeated. She nearly fessed up about their adventure in the dungeons but stopped herself. She didn’t know enough about that passage or the mysterious man Nick had seen with Blackwood. And it wasn’t like Ambrose could leave the house to investigate it. It would be better held between them until they knew more. “I feel like we’re just sitting around, waiting for something else to happen.”

“We kind of are,” Ambrose pointed out. “There doesn’t seem to be any sort of connecting thread or anything like that. It feels like a series of random events.”

“They’re not random…”

“No, they’re not,” Ambrose agreed. “But we can’t find a commonality though, can we?”

“No, we can’t,” Sabrina admitted. “I don’t like this, Ambrose.”

“Me either,” he said. “But you have to go about life and just – stay alert.” He considered her for a moment. “Honestly? Hilda and I fretted over whether or not you should participate in Lupercalia, given that there is something or something out there after you. When Zelda sent word that you were matched with Nicholas, I felt a lot better about it. I think Hilda did, too.”

“Hilda doesn’t like Nick.”

“Hilda doesn’t dislike Nick,” Ambrose corrected. “She’s just infinitely more cautious.”

“He put a protective barrier around us,” Sabrina revealed. “I ran into it when I woke up this morning.”

“Smart warlock,” Ambrose approved. Sabrina pushed herself upright.

“I’m going to go upstairs, take a nap.”

“Must be well-rested for night two of Lupercalia,” Ambrose said seriously. Sabrina rolled her eyes at his implication and left the room. Upstairs, she got comfortable and managed to fall asleep. Her dreams were full of disconnected images of secret passages, Nick’s lips on hers, and a black figure that didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the dream.

“Sabrina!” Hilda’s voice cut through her nap. “You have a visitor!”

Sabrina groggily sat up, her brain slow as she considered first the fact that she had a visitor and then that she had no idea who it would be.

“It’s Nicholas!” came Ambrose’s singsong voice. Sabrina scrambled out of bed at that bit of knowledge and stopped by her mirror to check her appearance. She quickly adjusted her headband and smoothed her hair, grateful Ambrose had the good sense to warn her. She hurried down the hall, then slowed at the top of the stairs. She spied Nick before he saw her. He stood awkwardly in the entry, trading small talk with Hilda while Ambrose leaned against the stair railing, entirely amused by the entire thing.

“Nick, hi,” Sabrina greeted as she walked down the steps. “I thought we weren’t meeting until later this evening?”

“I had other thoughts,” Nick said, eyes only for her. Sabrina joined the group and glanced at Hilda and Ambrose with raised eyebrows.

“Hilda, did I see you put a pie in the oven a bit ago?” Ambrose asked. “Should be nearly ready, shouldn’t it?”

“Oh!” Hilda caught on. “Yes, yes it should. I’ll just go…” She turned to shuffle out of the room. Ambrose, however, remained right where he was. Sabrina gave him another sterner look. He had the audacity to grin at her. “Ambrose!” Hilda ordered. “Come with me to the kitchen. I need you to reach something for me…”

“You’re a witch, just float it down…”

“Now, Ambrose,” Hilda ordered.

“You all are no fun,” he muttered under his breath as he begrudgingly left Sabrina and Nick alone in the entry. Nick chuckled in their wake.

“Sorry about them,” Sabrina aplogized.

“I don’t mind,” Nick said honestly. “I like Ambrose, and besides, I think Hilda might be warming up to me just a little bit.”

“Ambrose certainly likes you,” Sabrina couldn’t help herself.

“I’m a likeable guy,” he replied.

“What brings you by?” she prompted with a bit of a grin. Nick smiled and produced a single red rose from behind his back.

“I have a proposal.” He offered her the rose. She beamed as she accepted it.

“I’m listening.”

“What if we skipped Lupercalia tonight?” he proposed.

Sabrina raised an eyebrow.

“And do what?”

“It’s my understanding that today is mortal Valentine’s Day.” Sabrina nodded, her smile growing. “It’s also my understanding that there is a Valentine’s Day dance at the high school.” Sabrina nodded again, her smile even bigger. “So, why don’t we skip out on Lupercalia and go?”

“You want to go to the dance at Baxter High?” Sabrina clarified.

“With you,” Nick confirmed. “What do you say?”

“The dance is for Baxter High students…”

“You’re telling me you aren’t up for crashing a dance?” Nick countered, his eyes playful. “Come on, Spellman. Don’t deny me my first mortal dance.”

“In that case…” She grinned and nodded. “Okay, Scratch. It’s supposed to be even colder tonight and might even snow. I could get onboard with being in a warm gymnasium instead of out in the woods.” She remembered something and her small faltered. “I’ll have to come up with an explanation for my friends...”

“Pick you up at seven?” Nick asked in response.

“Pick me up at seven,” Sabrina agreed. She couldn’t stop smiling. It seemed Nick couldn’t either. She had no idea he had spent the morning researching Valentine’s Day and figuring out how to celebrate it. He thought he had made the right choice in ditching Lupercalia. Anything to see her smile like that.

“I’ll be here,” he confirmed.

She saw him out, then leaned against the door for a moment, smiling from ear to ear.

“So, what are we going to wear?” Ambrose appeared in the entry, Hilda on his heels. Ambrose was beaming. Hilda was making an effort not to let her own smile appear. “I do think that little black number you have would be just divine.”

“Were you two spying on us?” Sabrina demanded.

“No,” Hilda shook her head too quickly to be true. “Just couldn’t help overhearing is all.”

“Hmmm,” Sabrina hummed. She didn’t believe that for a minute.

“He’s taking you to the dance at the high school?” Hilda clarified.

“He is,” Sabrina nodded. “It seems he wants to experience mortal Valentine’s Day.”

“Or else he’s trying desperately to impress you,” Ambrose countered.

“Are you dating him, then?” Hilda wondered.

Sabrina found she didn’t know the answer. She didn’t even know if warlocks dated. She was near certain Nick didn’t. She decided in the moment to not worry about it.

“We’re – having fun.”

“Famous last words,” Ambrose prophesied.

“I may have misjudged him,” Hilda admitted. “He does seem to care about you.” Still, she teetered. She wasn’t quite ready to trust the charming warlock with her niece, but she couldn’t ignore the obvious – the boy had been there for Sabrina when she needed him.

“I’m going to go upstairs and call Roz,” Sabrina informed them.

“What’s the story about your return visit to Greendale this time?” Ambrose asked. Sabrina paused a few steps up the staircase and thought for a moment.

“It’s my aunt’s birthday,” she decided. “And she really wanted me to come home to celebrate.”

“Which aunt?” Hilda asked.

“I’m not giving a name,” Sabrina said. “There are two of you. I can use this excuse again in the calendar year if needed and won’t have to remember which one of you celebrated your however many hundreds of years birthday this weekend.”

“No need to bring up age,” Hilda grumbled. Ambrose chuckled.

“You’re still younger than Zelda,” he reminded her. Sabrina left them to debate the pros and cons of being over five hundred years old and disappeared to her bedroom. She picked up the phone and dialed Roz. Roz answered after two rings.

“Hey, Roz, it’s ‘Brina.”

“Sabrina!” Sabrina could hear her smile and that made her smile as well. “Hi!”

“Hi,” she replied. “So… Question. Are you going to the dance at Baxter High tonight?”

“I am,” Roz confirmed. “I’m about to start getting ready, actually.”

“Now?” Sabrina checked the time. “The dance is in like, six hours?”

“I’m treating myself to a full at-home spa experience,” Roz revealed. “A long soak in the bathtub, face mask, nails, the whole thing.”

“Sounds amazing,” Sabrina smiled. “What if I told you I’m in town?”

“You are?” Roz exclaimed. “Seriously?”

“Yep,” Sabrina nodded on her end of the phone. “My aunt’s birthday is this weekend and she wanted me home to celebrate, so I last minute arranged to be here. And I’m thinking about crashing the Baxter High dance…”

“Oh, please come!” Roz said. “It would be so much fun!” There was a pause. “Oh. But…”

“But what?” Sabrina said with trepidation.

“It’s just… Harvey is my date.” Sabrina knew if she could see Roz right now, her friend would be delivering the news with a bit of a cringe on her face as she waited for Sabrina’s reaction. “And Theo will be there, but he’s bringing that guy he met on the ski trip…”

“Robin?” Sabrina recalled. “That’s incredible! I can’t wait to meet him.”

“It won’t be awkward for you, will it?” Roz asked worriedly. “Me with Harvey, Theo with a date…”

“You’re worried I’ll be the fifth wheel,” Sabrina accurately stated. She twisted the phone cord around her finger. “I’m actually going to bring a date…”

“A date? Oh my God! Is it that Nick guy?”

“Yep,” Sabrina confirmed, popping the ‘p.’ “Do you think it will be weird? Me, bringing a date?”

“Maybe a little,” Roz admitted. “But I also think it will be a good thing. We will get to see you, get to know Nick, dance the night away. It’s going to be a lot of fun, Sabrina. I can’t wait to see you!”

They hung up a few minutes later and Sabrina fell back into her pillows, smiling up at the ceiling. She had a date – a real date – with Nick. She was going to spend her night dancing with her friends. She pushed herself upright. She thought she might just take a page out of Roz’s book and treat herself to a spa day.

* * *

Nick appeared outside of the Spellman mortuary and took a moment to smooth out his tux and take a deep breath. He was nervous. He had admitted that to himself when it took him a full five minutes to remember he could use magic to tie his bowtie. He had known how to tie a bowtie since he was five years old, thanks to his dad, but his fingers seemed to have stopped working and he had resorted to the spell he knew would do the trick.

This was a date.

This was an actual, honest to goodness date.

He had never been on a real date before. He did most of his wooing in dark corners and with smooth words. He had bought a lot of drinks, but he had never taken a person on a date. With Sabrina though, he found he wanted to do stuff like this – and not just to win a stupid bet with Prudence that time was ticking down on anyway.

He climbed the Spellman steps, took another deep breath, and knocked on the door. He was relieved it was Ambrose that answered. Zelda intimidated him in a ‘I know things you don’t’ sort of way while Hilda was a bit hot and cold. Ambrose was a friendly face.

“Don’t you polish up well?” Ambrose asked.

“I tried,” Nick replied wryly. Ambrose chuckled. He wouldn’t dare tell the warlock he was overdressed for a high school dance. He could sense the younger boy’s nerves and didn’t want to add to it.

“Sabrina will be right down. You know how girls are. They simply must make an entrance.”

Nick nodded. He had read that in his research into how mortal dates went. He had expected Sabrina to be upstairs when he arrived, and he was admittedly glad things were working out that way. She was going to descend the stairs looking as angelic as their kind was allowed to look and he was going to be the lucky fool waiting at the bottom to offer her his arm.

“Ah, Nicholas, don’t you look lovely.” Hilda and Cee entered from a side room, their arms linked. They, too, were dressed up.

“You look beautiful yourself,” Nick replied smoothly. “Cee, looking sharp.”

“We can’t let mortals have all the fun, can we?” Cee replied, eyes only for Hilda. “I’m taking my favorite witch out for Valentine’s Day. It happens to also be our anniversary after all.”

“All this talk about Valentine’s Day when you could be participating in Lupercalia.” Zelda glided in, dressed to depart for the Academy. “I’ll never understand it.”

“I’m merely counting down the minutes until all of you are out of this house and I have it all to myself,” Ambrose said, again with a note of bitterness that conveyed his true feelings about his aunts and cousin going out for the night. “Such a rare occurrence.”

“There is always next year for Lupercalia,” Nick replied to Zelda. “Besides, it’s going to snow…” His words trailed off.

Sabrina Spellman stole them.

She appeared at the stop of the stairs and Nick forgot everything and everyone else. She smiled brightly as she stepped down the stairs, her red dress fluttering around her, curls bouncing. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. He was staring, but he couldn’t help it. She was the most beautiful witch he had ever seen.

“Sabrina…” He sputtered when she reached the bottom step. She, too, only had eyes for him. Neither of them noticed how the aunts, Ambrose, and Cee looked on, Hilda swooning, Cee beaming, Ambrose grinning like the know-it-all he was, and Zelda trying not to show how affected she was by the young romance blossoming before them. “You look… Stunning. Truly. I’m stunned.”

“You don’t look so bad yourself, Scratch.” She smiled up at him as she adjusted his bowtie. He moved to take her hands, but remembered he was holding something.

“Oh! This is for you.” He produced a corsage and watched Sabrina’s reaction as she took in the spray of red, white, and pink roses. “A corsage, right?”

“A corsage,” Sabrina nodded, her smile growing. “It’s perfect. Will you put it on me?” She held out her hand. Nick fumbled with the plastic container for a moment, then took Sabrina’s hand. Someone – Ambrose, he thought – covertly took the container from him to free up both hands. He used his now free hand to slide the corsage onto her wrist. He lifted her hand and pressed his lips to the back of it. Hilda’s hand flew to her heart as her opinion of Nicholas Scratch rapidly pivoted. “Thank you, Nick.”

“Of course,” he smiled at her.

“You look fantastic, cousin,” Ambrose broke into their reverie. “That dress.” He made an ‘okay’ sign and nodded vigorously. “Much better choice than the black number.”

“Truly, love, you look beautiful,” Hilda added.

“Stunning, as Nicholas accurately put it,” Cee supplied.

“Thank you,” Sabrina said, her hand still in Nick’s.

“Shall we continue the mortalness of tonight and take a photo before you two hurry off?” Zelda picked up a camera from a side table. Nick wrapped his arm around Sabrina’s waist and pulled her into his side. Her arm went around him, her other hand to his chest.

“A proper prom pose,” Ambrose mused. Cee chuckled. Hilda just shook her head and looked on as Zelda took their photo. Nick turned his gaze from Zelda to Sabrina and smiled at her. He pressed a kiss to her temple just as Zelda snapped another photo.

“Ready to go, Spellman?” Nick asked.

“I am.” Sabrina picked up her clutch from where she had placed on the same side table as Zelda’s camera earlier. Nick helped her into her coat and hand-in-hand, they exited the house.

“Do you have a curfew?” Nick asked as they towards the gate.

“A curfew?” Sabrina repeated with amusement. Nick shrugged.

“Don’t mortals have curfews?”

“They do,” Sabrina nodded. “I don’t. Never have.” She smiled a bit. “I used to lie and say I had to be home by ten, just to make it seem like I, too, had a curfew like my friends.” She looked at Nick. “You studied up on mortal dating, didn’t you?”

“I might have looked into it,” Nick admitted, nearly embarrassed. Sabrina’s bright smile told him it was the right thing to do, however.

“Shall we teleport?” she asked once they were through the gate.

“You do the honors,” Nick agreed. “But before you do…” She yelped in surprise as he pulled her into him. His lips were on hers before she realized what was happening. She caught up quickly, however, and kissed him back with fervor. “I wanted to do that the moment I saw you at the top of those stairs,” he confessed, his forehead resting against hers. “But I refrained from doing so in front of your aunts.”

“Way to exercise that self-control, Scratch,” Sabrina teased. “But I’m glad you finally kissed me.” He kissed her again, just because he could. Sabrina kept his hand in hers and teleported them to a dark corner of sidewalk a couple of blocks from Baxter High. “I thought it best we didn’t appear directly in front of the school.”

“You’re getting good at this whole teleporting thing, Spellman.”

“I had a decent teacher.”

He couldn’t help but puff out his chest a little in pride and allowed her to lead him up the stairs of Baxter High. He purchased their tickets – after some squabbling with Sabrina over who would pay – and offered her his arm. She looped hers through it and steered him to the gymnasium.

“Wow,” he breathed when they paused at the door.

It had been transformed. The bleachers that had been pulled out for the basketball game had been pushed into the walls to open the space up even more. The stood under an elaborate red, white, and pink balloon arch. Several more balloon installations dotted the landscape. The lights were down and mood lighting in the same red, white, and pink scheme set the atmosphere. A disco ball spun above them and a DJ cranked music that had people on the dance floor.

“Welcome to Baxter High,” Sabrina stated. “What do think?”

“Are you kidding me?” Nick replied, trying to take it all in. “This is incredible. More magical than anything in our world.” He looked at her with an earnest expression. “I love getting to see this side of you.” Sabrina tightened her grip on his hand to keep herself upright – his words had made her weak in the knees, just like in the chick flick movies Ambrose liked. Nick let go of her hand, only to move into a dapper sort of bow and offer her his hand. “May I have this dance?”

Sabrina took his hand and dropped into an elegant curtsy.

“Of course you may.”

They practically ran to the dance floor.

They danced for a while, even as she greeted her friends and shared hugs with them. Roz and Theo greeted him kindly while the other one – Harvey – gave him a cold nod. Something about him made Nick bristle and it took everything he had not to pull Sabrina closer, just to make a point. Not that he needed to make a point. It was obvious to everyone watching that Sabrina had most certainly moved on from Harvey Kinkle.

The music changed to a slow tune and Nick happily pulled her into him.

“I’ve been waiting to see how good you are at slow dancing,” he said as her arms wrapped around his neck.

“You have, have you?” she questioned.

“I have.” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”

“Once or twice,” Sabrina said with a smile. He had told her several times. “And you, Nicholas Scratch, are incredibly handsome in a tux.”

“I overdressed,” he admitted. He had realized as much when they arrived and saw most of the student body in secondhand suits. Some of them looked more like they were dressed for a funeral.

“I disagree,” Sabrina shook her head. She didn’t say more, but she saw Nick’s choice of dress for what it was – he was simply of a different breed than most of the locals, and not just because he was a warlock. She leaned in and kissed him. He kissed him back, short and sweet, and smiled into her hair when she rested her head on his shoulder.

She could see Harvey and Roz, wrapped up in one another. The sight didn’t sting. It even looked – right. She could see Theo and his friend Robin as well. They sat close together, heads bowed, laughing. It made her smile to see Theo so happy. She thought she might like Robin. Theo had briefly introduced them earlier and she got a good feeling about him.

“Does Theo know his date is a hobgoblin?” Nick asked, lips close to Sabrina’s ears so he wouldn’t be overheard. Sabrina pulled away enough to look at him with a raised eyebrow.

“What?”

“He’s a hobgoblin,” Nick said again.

“How do you know?”

“Watch.” Nick used a nonverbal spell the send the lightest of breezes through the dance floor. It ruffled Robin’s hair, momentarily revealing the pointy ears he tried to hide with his hair. “See?”

“Is he dangerous?” Sabrina asked. “Should I warn Theo?”

Nick pulled her closer.

“No, hobgoblins are harmless enough. Historically, they were a spirit of the hearth and considered helpful. They did things around the house like ironing and dusting while the family they lived with slept and all they asked for in exchange was food. But the spread of Christianity shifted perception of them from helpful to mischievous. They like to pull pranks.”

“So, he’s harmless?” Sabrina clarified.

“I’m nearly sure of it,” Nick assured her. “He also looks like he’s pretty into Theo.” Sabrina had to agree. She rested her head back on Nick’s shoulder as they swayed to the music. “I really like dancing with you, Spellman.”

“Dancing with you is definitely not the worst thing I’ve ever done,” Sabrina agreed. Nick chuckled.

“Told you I’d grow on you.”

Sabrina just laughed. But, Nick noted, she didn’t deny it. The song ended and another upbeat tune took its place.

“Can I get you something to drink?”

“Please,” Sabrina nodded. She spied Roz heading for a few empty chairs and decided to join her. “Thank you, Nick.” He kissed her quickly before leaving her. She made her way to where Roz had taken a seat and fell into the chair beside her. “My shoes are cute, but they are killing my feet.”

“Agreed,” Roz said. “You look beautiful, by the way. I love your dress.”

“Thank you,” Sabrina smiled. “You look amazing too, Roz. And happy. Really really happy.”

“The same can be said about you.” She jerked her head towards where Nick – and Harvey, Sabrina noted warily – were at the refreshment table. “He sure is handsome.”

“Isn’t he?” Sabrina agreed. “I said I wasn’t going to get involved with him and yet here I am.”

“He looks pretty smitten too,” Roz pointed out. “I don’t think he’s taken his eyes off of you all night.”

“He does seem different with me,” Sabrina admitted. “But…” She sighed, deciding to confess something to Roz. “He’s more into lust than love. He has a reputation and I’m not that girl.”

“You’re worried he’s seeing someone else,” Roz deciphered.

“I am,” Sabrina confessed. “I don’t want to be one of many.”

“Have you – asked – him?” Roz wondered. Sabrina chewed her lip.

“No. But I suppose I should.”

“You definitely should,” Roz urged her. “But honestly ‘Brina? I don’t think you have anything to worry about. He’s completely tied around your dainty little finger.”

“Things look pretty serious between you and Harvey,” Sabrina changed the subject slightly.

“Things are good,” Roz nodded. “Really good, honestly. I know it’s weird…”

“It’s not,” Sabrina shook her head. “Not nearly as weird as it could be. Honestly Roz? The pair of you make sense, especially now that I’ve seen you together.”

“Maybe we can double – or triple – date sometime?” Roz proposed. “Me and Harvey, Theo and Robin, you and Nick?” Sabrina smiled.

“I’d like that.”

Across the room, Nick waited for the teacher manning the refreshment table to fill two cups of punch. He had his doubts that the stuff was going to be any good, but he would give it a shot. Sabrina wanted something to drink so he would bring her something to drink and punch was the only option he had without doing magic to conjure something.

“So, you and Sabrina huh?” Harvey Kinkle appeared next to him. Nick scrunched up nose in disgust.

“You and Roz,” he countered.

“Sabrina is okay with it,” Harvey said defensively. “I’ve known Roz a long time.”

“And I’m the new guy,” Nick realized, picking up that Harvey was weary of him simply because he was an outsider to their tightknit group.

“I just don’t get where you came from,” Harvey admitted. “You showed up out of nowhere.”

“That tends to happen when you’re the new guy,” Nick said. “I just happened to get lucky and meet Prudence, which led me to meeting Ambrose, which led me, quite fortunately, to Sabrina.”

“She doesn’t go to school here.”

“She goes to boarding school,” Nick continued playing along with the lie Harvey believed. He couldn’t help himself though. “I visited her there.” Harvey frowned.

“You did?” He wouldn’t admit it to the new guy in front of him, but he didn’t even know the name of Sabrina’s school. Neither did Roz or Theo.

“Long distance is hard,” Nick shrugged. “We do what we can to make it work.” He accepted the cups of punch a bored looking teacher offered “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to take my girl her punch.” He took a few steps away from the mortal he just didn’t like.

“You better not hurt her.”

Nick turned to look at the mortal who stood at the refreshment table in a suit that didn’t quite fit him right. The pants showed his ankles and the jacket was snug through his shoulders. With his floppy hair and gangly build, Nick wondered what Sabrina had ever saw in him.

“She’s safe with me,” he said, all the while knowing that wasn’t entirely true. “And she’s certainly not your concern anymore.” He turned on his heel and walked away, eager to get back to Sabrina. “Your punch, my lady,” he said, presenting her the plastic cup. She laughed a bit.

“Thank you, kind sir.” She took a sip and Nick did the same. He worked to hide his expression, but Sabrina saw it all the same and smirked into her cup. She knew what to expect from the refreshment table at a high school dance, but Nick didn’t. The sickly sweet punch was not something he would indulge in if given an option. “Having fun?”

“I’m with you,” Nick countered. Roz beamed as she watched the exchange. Sabrina really did look happy, and that made her happy.

With no warning, her vision shifted. Things went black for a moment, but then images she didn’t understand started to flash before her. She saw Sabrina, Nick, a cave with symbols.

“Roz?” came a faraway voice. “Roz!”

She snapped out of it. Sabrina was there, shaking her.

“’Brina…” Roz breathed. She shook her head, not sure what had just happened. It had happened a few times now, including at Sabrina’s house, but none of it made sense. She thought she might be going crazy.

“Are you okay?” Sabrina demanded. “What happened? Don’t tell me low blood sugar…”

“Roz!” Harvey was there now. “What happened? Do you need anything?”

“I didn’t eat dinner.” Roz looked to Sabrina. She was the one she needed to convince. Theo and Harvey would readily buy her story, but not Sabrina. She had witnessed an attack of whatever this was already, and she wasn’t easily fooled. “Really, Sabrina, I didn’t. I was so busy getting ready that food slipped my mind.”

“I’ll get you a snack,” Theo spoke up, having come over to investigate when he caught sight of Sabrina shaking Roz. “Be right back.” He hurried off without waiting for a response.

“I’m going to take you home,” Harvey decided.

“No,” Roz protested. “I’m fine…”

“You’re not,” Sabrina said. “This is the second time…”

“Second time?” Harvey cut in. “This happened before?”

“At my house,” Sabrina nodded. “She said it was low blood sugar then, too.”

“It was!” Roz insisted, not quite ready to admit the truth to her friends. “I’m fine now. I just need a snack.”

“I’m taking you home,” Harvey insisted. “And I’m telling your dad so he can get you to a doctor as soon as possible.”

“I think that’s for the best,” Sabrina backed him up. “Let Harvey take you home. The dance is almost over anyway.”

Roz protested for another few minutes, pausing only to accept the store-bought cookies Theo brought her, before she conceded and allowed Harvey to take her home. Sabrina and Theo accompanied them to Harvey’s truck. When they returned, Nick and Robin were waiting for them outside the school, neither really talking. Both of them perked up when their respective dates appeared.

“How is she?” Robin wanted to know.

“She seems okay now, but that was scary,” Theo answered.

“She better go to a doctor on Monday,” Sabrina stated.

“She’ll be okay,” Nick offered. He held his hand out to Sabrina and she took it. “What do you want to do, Spellman? Go back inside, head home?” She considered him for a moment. He looked so handsome and had been so patient while she helped her friend.

“How about one more dance before we go?”

“As long as it’s a slow one,” Nick replied in his smooth way.

Theo and Robin opted to leave in search of a late-night milkshake. Inside, Sabrina folded herself into Nick’s arms. She felt safe there, untouchable. At one point, he twirled her around, making her laugh. When he brought her back into his chest, he kissed her.

“Want to get out of her?” she asked.

“As much as I don’t want the night to end, it does look like things are wrapping up,” Nick agreed. The dance floor had thinned out and the decorations were being taken down by staff. Sabrina took his hand and led him out of the gym.

“Shall we walk home?” she proposed. She wasn’t quite ready for the night to end either.

“How about we teleport halfway?” Nick bargained. “I’m not trying to rush you home, but with everything that’s happened lately, those quiet roads this late at night feel like an open invitation.”

“You’re being overly cautious,” Sabrina told him. Nick shook his head.

“I don’t like the woods around here,” he admitted. “Every time I’ve been in them, especially at night, I feel like there’s something there, just out of sight, waiting and watching. Something or someone is after you. I’m not taking that chance.” He squeezed her hand. “Not with you.”

Sabrina couldn’t help but be swayed by his words. He did have a point after all. The woods around Greendale were full of witchcraft and secrets. She had grown up in them and the eerie feeling didn’t bother her. But even her mortal friends had commented on feeling goosebumps in the middle of the day. She was still holding Nick’s hand, so she teleported them to a halfway point and they continued walking.

“So what did you think about your first mortal dance?” Sabrina wondered.

“I’m glad I got to experience it with the most beautiful girl there,” Nick replied. “Seriously, Sabrina, you look stunning tonight.” Sabrina beamed.

“You’ve said that a few times now, Scratch.” He stopped walking and turned her to him.

“It is a fact that bears repeating.” He kissed her then and it didn’t take long before they were full on making out in the middle of a dusty backroad. A few stray snowflakes floated around them, but neither noticed. Sabrina was feeling rather warm when a breeze came along that left her chilled to the bone. Nick pulled away, suddenly alert, just as the moan followed. “There’s that breeze again…”

“Do you see anything?” Sabrina countered, already looking around. At first sight, there was nothing. Just the woods and empty fields stretching on. The sky was heavy with clouds and the trees were still. She was turning back to Nick who was searching in the opposite direction when she saw it. “Nick!”

He spun to face her. He didn’t have to ask what she saw. Walking – no, gliding – up the road towards them was a long line of cloaked figures. For a moment, they stood there, hand-in-hand, watching them come closer. Their gray ragged cloaks dragged the ground and covered their faces. They looked like nothing more than moving blobs of gray. Except for their hands. Thin, bony hands with pale sickly green long fingers were held before them.

“We need to get out of here,” Nick said urgently. “Now.” He pulled her into his side. “Luncae Magicae.” They reappeared a football field away from the mortuary gate. Nick cursed as they were pushed ack. The Spellmans had extended the boundaries of their protective spells in the last twenty-four hours.

“Are they gone?” Sabrina asked. She searched for the figures. She saw them in the distance. They were moving towards them at a steady pace.

“Come on,” Nick urged. He tugged at her hand. “We need to get through the gate.”

They started to run, their hands linked. Nick, faster than her, pulled her along. She stumbled in her heels but kept going. They were halfway there when she started to tumble.

“Sabrina!” Nick caught her, just before she hit the ground.

“My heel broke!” She used him to steady herself and reached down to pull both shoes off. She left them there and took off, barefoot, towards the gate, Nick at her side. They didn’t stop again until they were safely on the other side. “What in the heaven are they?”

“Night movers,” Nick reported as they tried to catch their breath. The cloaked figures came right up to the gate. They lined the fence but weren’t able to come any closer. They didn’t make a single sound, something that was even more unnerving than their appearance. “They are cannibals. They capture people by their souls and then eat their flesh. They literally eat their victims alive.”

Sabrina shuddered.

“How do we get rid of them?”

“We have to wait until morning,” he told her. “They can’t survive in the sunlight.”

“So we just – leave them out here?”

“Unfortunately,” Nick nodded. “They will stand out here all night, waiting for a soul to come out of the house and cross the gate.”

“You’re not leaving then,” Sabrina stated. “You’re staying here tonight.” Nick didn’t bother to argue. He wasn’t keen on having to find a way to navigate past them in the first place but getting to spend the night with Sabrina – even if in separate beds as he suspected would be the case – was appealing.

“Sabrina!” Ambrose erupted onto the porch. “What in the heaven…?” He took in the scene. “Night movers?”

“They appeared down the road,” Nick confirmed. He still had Sabrina by the hand. He remembered she was barefooted. It was freezing out, the ground frozen solid. “Come on, Spellman,” he directed in a soft tone. “Let’s get you inside.”

He looped his arm around her and together, they made it their ways up the stairs.

“Those things just – appeared?” Ambrose asked once they were on the porch.

“Someone conjured them,” Nick said. “We have no idea who. We teleported to the halfway mark between here and the school. They appeared pretty soon after.”

“They have to be conjured?” Sabrina clarified. “Another creature of Hell?”

“Not night movers,” Ambrose shook his head. “They come from the in between. Not purgatory, another space, a space reserved for the most vial. It would take a skilled witch or warlock to conjure a being from that space.”

“We have to figure out who is doing this,” Sabrina stated. “And why.”

“Are your aunts home?” Nick asked Ambrose.

“Dammit, no,” Ambrose picked up on what Nick was implying. “I’ll send them word. Let’s re-group in the living room to discuss further.”

“My aunts can’t pass through them,” Sabrina realized. She stood on the porch, looking out over the sight before her. “They can’t come home tonight.”

“They will be gone in the morning,” Nick promised her. He put his hand on the small of her back. “Come on, Spellman. It’s cold out.” He led her inside and helped her out of her coat. He smiled as he took her in. “Even barefoot with your hair a mess, you are still the most beautiful witch I’ve ever seen.”

“You’re laying it on thick now, Scratch.”

He kissed her to prove otherwise.

“Why don’t you go upstairs and change? Is the kettle on the stove? I’ll make all of us some tea.”

“It’s on the stove,” Sabrina confirmed. “There should be some cookies in the tin on counter as well.”

“I’ll bring them,” Nick promised her. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “It’s going to be okay.”

Sabrina found she wanted to believe him.

She went upstairs and removed her dress. She let it fall to the floor, then picked it up and draped it over her desk chair to hang up later. She washed her face and then took longer than was strictly necessary to pick out a pair of pajamas. She wanted something comfortable, but also something that she wouldn’t mind Nick seeing her in. She had a brief vision of something far sexier than the flannel sleep shorts and long sleeve shirt she selected, but she quickly pushed them aside. She slid her feet into a pair of slippers and returned downstairs. Nick and Ambrose were already in the living room sipping tea. Nick had untucked his dress shirt and unbuttoned it to reveal a white undershirt benefit it.

“I made you chamomile,” Nick said when he spied her. “And added some lavender and honey. I thought it might help you sleep tonight.”

Sabrina smiled. It was exactly the tea she would have made herself.

“Thank you, Nick.” She sat close to him on the couch and accepted the tea he handed her. “Any insight into the situation while I was upstairs?”

“None,” Ambrose sighed. “We have three instances of three entities being summoned to attack you. They have nothing in common aside from the need of having someone summon them. We don’t know who did the summoning or why, let alone where that breeze comes from.”

“How are we going to find out?” she asked.

“No idea,” Nick admitted. “None of our research has turned up anything. But we have to keep digging.” He draped his arm around Sabrina’s shoulders. She leaned into him. For both of them, it was the most natural thing in the world. “We’ll figure this out. Somehow.”

“Nicholas is right,” Ambrose agreed. “We can only keep looking.”

“What do we do about those things outside?” Sabrina questioned.

“We simply don’t cross the boundary until they’re gone,” Ambrose told her. Sabrina had an idea.

“We should question them. We can ask who sent them.” She made to get to her feet, but Nick stopped her.

“They don’t speak. Questioning them would be pointless. Did you notice their silence?” Sabrina nodded. “They will be gone in the morning. Tonight, we stay inside and try to get some sleep.”

“I should call Roz,” Sabrina said after a few minutes of contemplative quiet. “Make sure she’s okay.”

“What exactly happened there anyway?” Nick wondered. “I didn’t catch the whole story.”

“Something happened to Roz?” Ambrose asked.

“She went all rigid and still,” Sabrina said. “Like she did when she was over last weekend. She used the low blood sugar excuse again.”

“It happened again?” Ambrose questioned.

“From what I saw, she was nearly catatonic,” Nick said. “She’s done this before?” Sabrina quickly filled him in on Roz’s visit. “I don’t think it’s low blood sugar.”

“It sounds like she needs to visit a doctor,” Nick mused.

“I’m going to call…”

“It’s late, Sabrina,” Ambrose said. “You will wake her – or at the very least her parents. You can check on her in the morning.”

“So what if I wake up her parents? I’ll tell them what happened – just in case she didn’t.” There would be no changing her mind. She got up and left Nick and Ambrose in the living room.

“You sure you want to put up with that stubborn witch?” Ambrose asked.

“She’s passionate and she cares,” Nick said by way of explanation. Ambrose nodded his approval.

“You seem to be invested in this whole ‘who is attacking Sabrina’ bit,” he continued.

“I’ve been with her for most of those attacks,” Nick reminded him. “I don’t especially like the idea of knowing there is someone out there with their sights set on her.” He swirled the last dregs of his tea. “I don’t like the idea of her alone in the woods. There is something out there. Something I don’t like.”

“It’s been so long since I’ve been in those woods,” Ambrose said wistfully. “When I was a lad, I knew them like the back of my hand. I’d like to think it would all come back to me, but at this point, it’s hard to know.”

Nick considered Ambrose. He pursed his lips, a plan stitching itself together. He could hear the faint sounds of Sabrina on the phone in the kitchen and seized his moment.

“What if I told you I had a way to get you out of house arrest?”

Ambrose looked at Nick sharply.

“I would say Zelda has called in every favor and overturned every stone she can in an effort to get my sentence reduced but has clearly had no success. If she can’t do it, I doubt a mere warlock still in school – no matter how talented you are – can manage.”

“She hasn’t tried this,” Nick said.

Sabrina reappeared them, effectively ending their conversation. Nick gave Ambrose a single nod to tell him their conversation wasn’t over, then turned his attention to Sabrina.

“How is Roz?”

“She seems perfectly fine,” Sabrina leaned against the doorframe. “Harvey just left. She said she’s going to the doctor on Monday. She told her parents what happened.”

“I’m glad she’s okay,” Nick said solemnly. Sabrina smiled at him then looked to her cousin.

“Ambrose, do you have something Nick can sleep in?”

“Of course,” Ambrose confirmed. “Although… Will you need clothes, Nicholas?”

“Ambrose!” Sabrina chided. Ambrose stood as he chuckled.

“I’ll bring something to Sabrina’s room momentarily.”

Nick and Sabrina took their dishes to the kitchen and turned out the house lights before they made their way upstairs. Ambrose had left a pair of sweats and a t-shirt on Sabrina’s bed. Nick took them and excused himself to the bathroom. When he came out, Sabrina was standing at her window, looking down at the night movers.

“You okay?” He came behind her and rested a hand on her hip.

“It’s going to be hard to fall asleep with them out there.” She leaned against him.

“They won’t hurt you,” Nick assured her. “The protections around this place are second to none I’ve ever seen before. And I’ll be here. I won’t let anything hurt you.”

Sabrina turned and rested her hands on his shoulders.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she shared. “I’m glad you asked me to the dance tonight.”

“It was one of my better decisions,” Nick told her as he brushed his fingers along her cheekbone. “Well worth skipping a night of Lupercalia.” He didn’t want to think about what could have happened if he and Sabrina had been out in the woods once more. “I’ll be downstairs on the couch if you need me.”

“The couch?” Sabrina questioned. “Why in the Heaven would you be on the couch?”

“I thought…” Sabrina shook her head.

“First, have you seen the size of this place? We have guest rooms. Second, and most importantly, you’re sleeping in here.” She smiled a bit, suddenly nervous. “With me.”

Nick was sure his heart stopped for at least a few beats.

“I didn’t want to assume…”

“We’re just sleeping,” she said in a tone that mean there would be no debating the matter. “But I want you to sleep in here, next to me.”

“If you’re sure…”

“I’m sure,” Sabrina nodded. She tugged at his hand. “Come on.” She led him to her bed and pulled the blankets back. She had never shared a bed with a guy before, but this felt right. It felt like the most natural thing in the world. She got into bed, but Nick hesitated. “Nick?”

“I just don’t want to mess this up,” he confessed.

“Come to be bed, Nick,” Sabrina encouraged. “I trust you.”

Nick swallowed down a ball of mixed emotions and got into bed with her. Never, not once, had he been nervous about getting into bed with someone. But this was different. This was different entirely.

“I’ve never spent the night with someone,” he admitted.

“What?” Sabrina propped herself up on her elbow so she could look at him. She found that hard to believe.

“I’ve never spent the night with someone,” he repeated. “I have, um…” he averted his eyes, embarrassed. “I’ve loved and left, as I think the mortals say.”

His confession warmed Sabrina. She was quickly starting to trust him, even fall for him. She moved closer and rested her head on his chest. He instinctively wrapped his arm around her to hold her there.

“Technically, you slept with me last night, too,” she reminded him.

“Lupercalia is different,” Nick tried to explain as his fingers worked through her hair. “This, in your room, in your bed, it’s more intimate.”

He couldn’t pinpoint when things changed, but they had. He didn’t want to mess up whatever was building between him and Sabrina. He didn’t want to lose whatever this thing was between them, the way he felt when she smiled at him, the little thrill that went through him when she took his hand, the way his whole spine seemed to light up when she kissed him.

Sabrina leaned up and kissed him as though she knew his thoughts.

It quickly dissolved into a full on make out session. Sabrina found her hands under Nick’s shirt, running her palms along his chest. She decided it needed to go – it wasn’t his shirt anyway – and pulled it over his head. He pulled her closer, kissed her neck, her shoulder. But, she noticed, he was still respectful, even as his hands cautiously explored her body, strictly over her clothes. She shuttered when his fingers brushed along the curve of her breast. She had had intense make out sessions with Harvey, but this was something entirely different. This was something far more intimate.

“Goodnight, Spellman,” Nick breathed when he finally pulled away. Their foreheads rested against one another and they breathed hard. “Sleep well.”

“Goodnight, Nick,” she whispered. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

He pressed a kiss to her hair and kept her in his embrace. She drifted off to sleep soon after.

He laid there awake for a long time, however.

There were a lot of questions, a lot of unknowns.

But he knew two things with absolute certainty.

He had completely and entirely fallen for Sabrina Spellman.

And he had to tell her the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quite a bit happened here, didn't it? First dates, Roz having another "episode," cloaked figures... And Nick, admitting he has fully fallen for the girl... 
> 
> I'm too tired to think of anything further to add - East Coast to West Coast time change is kicking my butt - but I hope you enjoyed this one! Let me know what you thought of it!


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter update - but still... A packed one.

Silence hung over the Spellman kitchen. Nick didn’t like it. He hadn’t spent a lot of time at the Spellmans, but he was certain the place was never quiet. It was a place full of life, of Hilda banging around in the kitchen or in her garden, of Sabrina and Ambrose bickering, of Zelda tapping her smoking stick to dismiss the ashes at the end of her cigarette. It wasn’t this heavy, contemplative silence that had fallen over the room like a thick blanket once he and Sabrina rehashed the previous night.

“I suppose we’re no closer to figuring out who is sending all of these beings, are we?” Zelda finally broke the silence.

“You are sure there were no traces of magic?” Hilda asked for the third time since the night movers faded with the morning light and the aunts were allowed to return home.

“The faintest crackles,” Nick answered once more. He had taken Sabrina out with him that morning and did the same spell he had performed in the woods after the bee attack to see if there were any traces of magic. He had taught her the spell and together, they had re-traced their steps and investigated the surrounding area. Other than a few crackles, there was nothing of use. “It had been hours since the magic occurred, and it was in a wide open space. What hadn’t disappeared had drifted away by the time we were able to go out there.”

He had woken up to an empty bed, only to find Sabrina at her window once more. He had gone to her and realized it wasn’t quite dawn yet. They stood there together, his arms around her waist as she leaned into him, and watched as the sun rose and the night movers faded away. He had tried to pull her back into bed for another couple of hours of sleep, but she resisted and the next thing he knew, he was in a makeshift outfit of what he borrowed from Ambrose and what he had worn the night before and on his way outside. He desperately wanted to change into his own clothes, but he wouldn’t leave Sabrina to face her aunts and their questions on her own.

“This isn’t good,” Hilda shook her head. “If those night movers had gotten the pair of you…”

“But they didn’t,” Sabrina reminded them. “Nick was quick to teleport us, and then we outran them. I want to know who sent them. And why.”

“We all do,” Ambrose reminded her.

“There is a piece of the puzzle that we’re missing,” Nick said. He hadn’t been able to shake the idea that he had most of the pieces – he was just missing the one that connected them all.

“I would say we’re missing more than a single piece,” Zelda drawled. “Sea demons, bees, night movers… They have nothing in common aside from being conjured from Hell.”

“They have something in common,” Nick insisted. “What that is is what we’re missing. And the night movers didn’t come from Hell.”

“Agree to disagree,” Zelda decided. She was torn over Nicholas Scratch’s presence. Whatever was going on felt like a Spellman family matter, yet he was there, practically drooling over her niece, and offering his input. Input, she had to begrudgingly admit, that was insightful. With Ambrose out of commission past the gate, she wouldn’t turn down his help. “We must continue our research.”

“Our research?” Ambrose piped up. “When have you done research, Auntie?”

“Now is not the time for you to be cheeky,” Zelda informed him. “I do think it suffices to say that Sabrina will not be attending the final night of Lupercalia.”

“But…” Sabrina started to protest. Nick covered her hand with his.

“She’s right,” he cut her off. “You’re a sitting duck in the middle of the woods at night.”

“I’ll be with you,” she argued.

“Not the whole time,” Nick shook his head. “There is that stupid chase at the beginning.”

“I’ll make it easy for you,” Sabrina stated. “I don’t think we should skip out on Lupercalia. We can pretend things are normal and be on the lookout, see what happens, if we can catch someone…”

“We’ll do something else,” Nick promised her. “Let’s just avoid the woods.”

“Listen to Nicholas and Zelda,” Hilda encouraged her. “Sticking close to home is the smart thing to do.”

“But we could draw them out…,” Sabrina tried again.

“There are other ways,” Nick and Zelda said at the same time. They exchanged a look that wasn’t hostile, exactly, but it was clear both of them were lobbying to be the one to protect Sabrina.

“Isn’t this great?” Sabrina sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. “My aunts and my… Nick. Ganging up on me.”

Nick pretended not to notice the way she hesitated over what to call him. That wasn’t a conversation for the breakfast table, at least not one that included her aunts and cousin.

“We’re just being cautious, love,” Hilda answered. “Now, does anyone want some more French toast? Bacon?” There was a general murmur of declining. She had stuffed them full.

“I’ll help with the dishes,” Sabrina offered. She had to keep moving. She was full of pent up energy and needed to do something, lest she explode. “Then I want to check on Roz.”

“Check on Roz?” Hilda wondered. “Something wrong with Rosalind?”

“She had a spell or something last night,” Sabrina shared. “It’s the second time I’ve seen it happen. She goes rigid and becomes almost catatonic. It lasts less than a minute, but it’s scary. She’s going to a doctor on Monday.”

“Hmm,” Zelda hummed.

“I know that ‘hmm,’” Ambrose said. “You know something, Zelda.”

“I know nothing about Rosalind’s ailment,” Zelda stated. “My hum was merely a reaction.”

“I don’t think I believe you,” Sabrina countered.

“Suit yourself,” Zelda shrugged. “Hilda? We said we were going to the market today. Let’s get to it. I’d rather get it over with before all the mortals show up.”

“Make sure you get some of those potato chips I like,” Ambrose piped up. “And I know Hilda loathes them, but some of those frozen French fries, the ones you put in the oven? The curly ones, if you can find them. And some of that soda pop…” He followed them out of the room, rattling off his list of grocery store wants.

“Twenty-five more years and he can buy his own groceries,” Sabrina mused. “But I can guarantee he will still be skipping out in dish duty.”

“I’ll help you with the dishes, Spellman,” Nick chuckled. He stood and, ever the gentleman, at least with Sabrina, he pulled her chair out for her to stand. He didn’t dare comment that, if things went according to his plan, Ambrose might be free sooner than she thought. “But first…”

He pulled her to him to kiss her. It was a kiss full of maple syrup and coffee and he was sure he could have stood in that kitchen and kissed her all day if it was acceptable. Instead, he pulled away and started carrying dishes to the sink.

Once the dishes were done, Nick decided it was time for him to head back to the Academy. He wanted a shower and his own clothes, but he also had a few things to take care of.

“I was thinking,” he said when they reached the gate. “I could use a few fiction books to read, and Cee has quite the horror novel collection. Since your friends know you’re in town, maybe we could go there later? Get something to eat, pick up a few books?”

Sabrina smiled and nodded.

“I’d like that,” she said. “Maybe we could catch a movie, too?”

“Anything you want.” He would sit through a movie with her if that was what she wanted to do. Besides, he had never been to a movie theater. “Pick you up around six?”

“Perfect,” Sabrina nodded. “I’m going to go check on Roz and then learn everything I can about night movers.”

“Be careful?” Nick requested.

“I will,” she promised him. “But you be careful too.”

“Always.”

They shared one more passion-filled kiss before Nick walked out of the Spellman boundary and teleported away. He made quick work of showering and changing into something that wasn’t half Ambrose Spellman, then set out with a determined stride through the Academy. He found her in one of the school’s many small studies, idly flipping the pages of a magazine. She was alone.

“The bet’s off.”

Prudence looked up from her magazine.

“Come again, Nicky?”

“The bet is off,” he repeated. “I forfeit. I want no part of it.”

She smirked at him.

“You can’t just call off our bet, Nicky.”

“The Heaven I can’t. I should have never made it in the first place. It’s done, Prudence. No one wins, no one loses.”

“I don’t accept those terms.”

“I don’t care,” Nick countered. “I’m out. I’m not hurting her like that.”

Prudence studied him long with a hard look. Her smirk became absolutely wicked.

“You’ve falling for her,” she accused. “You, the slutty warlock who thought he could get anything with legs to fall for _him_ has fallen for the girl. What a comical twist.”

“It’s not like that.” Even Nick knew he was lying. “The bet is off. It was dumb to begin with.”

“You are so far gone,” Prudence taunted, still smirking. “Fine, Nicky. The bet is off. But you lose by forfeit.” She narrowed her eyes at him. A moment later she scoffed. “Damn you, Nicholas!”

“Did you honestly think I wasn’t dumb enough not to protect myself against you, Prudence?”

“I’m so used to the mediocracy of the warlocks around here that I forget you’re capable of so much,” Prudence sniffed. She had planned to mess with his mind, have him agree to do her bidding. Except he had come prepared.

“Coming from you, I’ll take that as a compliment,” Nick stated. He crossed his arms over his chest. “The bet is off. Tell your sisters. Remind them what I’m capable of if they take it upon themselves to tell Sabrina.”

“Did you just threaten my sisters?” Prudence asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I did,” Nick nodded once. “It wasn’t an empty threat, either.” He tilted his head a bit as he looked at her. “Honestly, Prudence, if I were you? I would spend less time on petty bets regarding witches you don’t like and more time on wondering what your so-called father is up to.”

Prudence narrowed her eyes.

“What are you implying?”

Nick shrugged.

“He’s rather invested in continuing his legacy through those twins, isn’t he?” he asked. “I know warlocks can be incredibly sexist, especially one like Blackwood, but you would think the man would notice what a formidable witch his daughter is.” He stared Prudence down. She didn’t blink, didn’t let on that his words affected her, but he could see them land all the same. “You would think he would be quite happy to pass along his so called legacy to a witch like you.”

Nick turned and walked away then, leaving Prudence to stew on his words.

He had showered, changed, and put an end to the stupid bet, but his work wasn’t done. He returned to his room and set about putting a soundproofing charm around his space. He spelled a fire into the grate and took a big breath before he began his spell. The man appeared almost right away.

“You came fast,” Nick stated.

“Forgive my curiosity about your summons,” he replied in a bored tone. “I was in the midst of a rather entertaining sentencing, so for your sake, I hope you have an update.”

“I do,” Nick confirmed. “I’ve made progress.” He zeroed in on the foreboding figure before him and summoned his courage. “And I need a favor.”

* * *

Sabrina tapped softly on the door. She was already opening it when a soft ‘come in!’ came through.

“Hi,” she greeted Roz. “How are you feeling?”

Roz was stretched across her window seat with a book. She sat up when she saw Sabrina.

“’Brina, hey!” She looked fine, Sabrina noted, her critical eyes on her. Like nothing had happened the night before. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to check on you,” she joined Roz on the bench. “I had to convince your dad to let me see you.”

“I’m supposed to be taking it easy,” Roz rolled her eyes. “He’s being a little overprotective. Not that that’s surprising.” Sabrina nodded her agreement. Mr. Walker had a tendency to be a little extreme.

“What’s going on, Roz?” Sabrina asked, getting right down to it. “I don’t buy your blood sugar story.”

Roz sighed.

“Sabrina…”

“No,” Sabrina cut her off. “Don’t do that. Don’t try to make out like everything is fine. I’m your best friend. I know everything is _not_ fine. Save us both the trouble and tell me the truth.”

Roz nodded. She took a moment to collect herself. She had finally confided in her father, but still hadn’t told him the whole story. It was different, confessing to her best friend. Something about telling Sabrina made it more real. But she was ready to tell her. She was tired of carrying her secret entirely alone.

“First, I’m losing my eyesight.”

Sabrina’s eyes widened.

“What? Roz…”

“There’s some kind of disease,” Roz explained. “It runs in my family. My grandmother has it. It looks like it skips a generation. She’s blind, Sabrina.” Roz swallowed hard. “I will be too. Eventually.”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “There has to be something…” Her head was already spinning over spells.”

“There is an operation,” Roz told her. “It’s expensive, but it might work.”

“Might?” Sabrina questioned.

“Might,” she nodded. “I’ll know more after my appointment on Monday.”

“Does that explain why you go rigid?” Sabrina asked. “I know I’m not a doctor, but that seems like a stretch, to connect losing your eyesight to the way you go all catatonic.”

“There’s more,” Roz confessed. She dropped her gaze to her hands and played with her fingers. “I haven’t told anyone. Not even my dad.”

“What is it?” Sabrina placed her hand over Roz’s. “Tell me, Roz. It’s me. You can tell me anything.”

“This is… Going to sound crazy.”

“Try me,” Sabrina said wryly. Roz had no idea what crazy actually looked like.

“I… Think I’m having some sort of mental breakdown.” Sabrina raised an eyebrow. “I see – things. Things that don’t make sense. Like last night at the dance? I saw you and Nick in some cave.”

“Nick and I in a cave?” Sabrina repeated. She shifted her thoughts from curing Roz’s blindness to figuring out why she was having visions, if they were visions at all. “What else have you seen?”

“When it happened in your bedroom? I saw – things. I don’t know what they were. Just – things. I couldn’t really make them out. Whenever it happens, it’s brief and I only see flashes and blobs of color. It’s only happened a few times. Last night was the first time I’ve been able to tell what I’m seeing. I guess it’s my brain doing something weird.” Her eyes watered. “I’m worried, Sabrina. What if it’s a tumor or something?”

“It’s not,” Sabrina shook her head. It couldn’t be. Not her friend. “Don’t think like that, Roz. It’s something simple, something the doctors will diagnose, and you will get treated and you will be fine.” She had to be. Sabrina wouldn’t allow another outcome.

“I hope so.”

Roz’s lip trembled. Sabrina reached for her and hugged her fiercely.

“It’s going to be okay,” she assured Roz. “It’s going to be fine.”

She wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince herself or Roz.

“I know I need to tell my dad what’s going on,” Roz admitted as she pulled away. “But he was so upset when I told him about my vision. I couldn’t bring myself to tell him I’m seeing things, too.”

“Tell him when you’re ready,” Sabrina said. “But, maybe, tell your doctor?”

“I will,” Roz nodded. “Thank you for stopping by, Sabrina. Harvey has been so worried and Theo has called twice. I tried to convince my dad to let me invite you guys over for a movie night, but he’s being pretty strict about me resting.”

“I’m always here for you, Roz,” Sabrina told her. _At least,_ she reminded herself, _for a few more years._ “Anything you need. Call the mortuary if you need me. My aunts or Ambrose will get the message to me and I’ll be right there.”

“I know you will be,” Roz nodded with a thankful smile. It didn’t occur to her to ask why she couldn’t just call Sabrina at school. “I’m pretty sure my dad is going to kick you out soon, but until he does, I need a distraction… You looked like you had a lot of fun with Nick last night.”

“I really did,” Sabrina confessed. “He was the perfect date.”

“Is he as good of a kisser as he looks like he would be?”

“Roz!” Sabrina exclaimed.

“What?” Roz shrugged, the mood lightening. “Inquiring minds want to know!”

“He is better than he looks like he would be,” Sabrina confessed. “Like toes curling, seeing stars good. Kissing him is… Incredible.” She wished she could tell Roz about how it was to fall asleep on his chest after making out, what it was like to wake up next to him that morning. It would open up too many questions. “I’m already looking forward to doing it again.”

“Sounds like somebody might have finally admitted they have a crush on Nicholas Scratch,” Roz teased.

“Someone is finally willing to admit it,” Sabrina said.

“When are you seeing him again?”

“Tonight,” Sabrina said. “We’re getting dinner and going to a movie.”

“So cliché and romantic!”

Sabrina rolled her eyes fondly at Roz’s enthusiasm. There was a tap on the bedroom door. It opened and Mr. Walker peeked his head in.

“Sabrina? It was nice of you to stop by, but Rosalind really needs to rest.”

“Dad,” Roz sighed.

“It’s okay,” Sabrina said with a patient smile. She hugged Roz one more time. “I’ll call you tomorrow?”

“Please,” Roz nodded. “Before you go back to that fancy school of yours.”

“Yeah,” Sabrina agreed with a pang. “Before I go back to school.”

She let herself out and walked until she was out of sight of the Walker home. She stopped and blew out a long breath, suddenly exhausted. After the last two late nights with Nick, last night’s run in with the night movers, and now the knowledge that her best friend might have something more serious than low blood sugar, all she wanted was a nap.

“Lunacae magicae.”

Back at the mortuary, she managed to get to her room without running into an aunt or Ambrose. She curled up under a quilt and drifted off almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Except her dreams weren’t peaceful.

They were full of cloaked figures and caves and Nicholas Scratch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nick ended the bet. Look at him, trying to do the right thing. Growth, that. And Sabrina's worried over Roz on top of everything else... All this to say, the next update is going to be a big one. 
> 
> I cannot thank you enough for all of your love on my work - reading, sharing, commenting, leaving kudos... It means the world that you're still putting up with me and letting me share my work. Thank you so very much. 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this one lives up to the hype I teased at the end of the last chapter...

“When, exactly, are you going to read all of these books, Scratch?”

Sabrina’s eyes danced with amusement as Nick added first one book then another to the basket in his hand. He had picked up a few horror novels, but a display of classic literature had caught his eye and his to-read pile kept growing.

“I read fast, Spellman,” he told her, even as he scanned the back of _The Odyssey_. “Turns out there are an awful lot of mortal books I’ve never read.”

“I don’t think even you can read all the books in the entire world.” She smiled as she watched him. He was almost childlike in his excitement about new books and she found it incredibly attractive.

“I can try,” he retorted as he picked up another book. “What about _Rebecca_? Think I would like this one?” He was impressed by Sabrina’s knowledge of classic literature. He knew her love of all things horror, but she seemed just as interested in the classics.

“I think that one is right up your ally. A woman marries a wealthy man and learns his house is haunted by the memory of his first wife. It’s one of my favorites, actually.”

“Horror and romance,” Nick said appreciatively. “I can get into that.” He added it to his basket. “I really should stop, shouldn’t I?”

“Cee’s isn’t going anywhere,” she reminded him.

“It’s not,” he agreed. “Besides,” he put his basket down and approached her, “the longer I shop, the less time I have to do this.” His hands went to her waist as she reached for him. Sabrina found herself pressed up against a bookshelf, his body pressed against hers as his lips worked their own brand of magic.

“Cee’s going to kick us out if we keep this up,” Sabrina said when they parted for a breath.

“He’ll let us back in,” Nick said. “He likes your aunt and your aunt is rather fond of you.”

He kissed her again. He pulled away a few moments later and brushed his thumb across her lips. He grinned at how swollen they were, how flushed her cheeks were.

“Kissing you in a bookshop is so much better than having to chase you through the woods wearing a wolf’s head,” he decided. Sabrina laughed.

“I will actually agree with that,” she nodded. Despite her initial protests the night before, she didn’t much mind skipping out on the last night of Lupercalia, especially as her aunts hadn’t put up a fight about her going to Cee’s and a movie with Nick. It was certainly a lot warmer than running through the woods in cold February night. “But we should get going. The movie starts soon, and I don’t want to miss the previews.”

“Ambrose warned me you like previews a little too much,” Nick recalled a nugget from the rushed conversation he had held with Ambrose earlier when he arrived to pick Sabrina up. Sabrina just shook her head in amusement and together, they walked to the register.

Sabrina idled at Nick’s side as he and Cee made conversation about the books Nick had picked up. She glanced towards the door as the bell chimed out of habit. Her eyes widened.

“I’m going to say hi to someone,” she told Nick. He nodded to let her know he heard her but continued his lively conversation with Cee. Her fingers gazed his back affectionately as she passed him. She didn’t see how it made him smile just a bit, but Cee did.

“She’s something else, isn’t she?” he asked the young warlock.

“She is,” Nick confirmed. Cee chuckled as he accepted the next book from Nick. The warlock was head over heels for the girl he considered is niece. He, for one, thought it was a match made in Hell. He thought Hilda might be coming around to his way of thinking too.

Across the room, Sabrina approached the two familiar faces with a big smile.

“Harvey! Mr. Kinkle!”

“Hi, Sabrina,” Harvey greeted her with a small but friendly smile. “Grandpa, you remember Sabrina, don’t you?”

Harvey’s grandfather, a short, stumpy man, smiled at her through yellow teeth.

“How could I forget a girl as pretty as Sabrina Spellman?” he asked. “How are you, dear?”

“I’m well,” Sabrina confirmed. “How long are you in town?”

“Oh, a few days, a week or so. I’m playing it by ear.”

“We didn’t know he was coming,” Harvey supplied with what Sabrina recognized as veiled patience. She knew Harvey didn’t have the best relationship with the men in his family. “He showed up at the house this afternoon.”

“A surprise visit,” Sabrina said. “That’s nice. Any plans while you’re here, Mr. Kinkle?”

“It’s been a while since I paid a visit to Greendale and my boys,” he answered. “I thought it high time I check in and, since I’m here, teach ‘em a bit of the family business.”

“Mining?” As far as Sabrina knew, Harvey’s father knew plenty about mining. Harvey knew more than he wanted to. She doubted he would be interested in anything the man had to say.

“And other things,” Mr. Kinkle said in an elusive manner. He kept his eyes on Sabrina. “Care to join my grandson and I for dinner?”

“No, thank you,” Sabrina shook her head. “I just finished an early dinner, actually. I’m heading to a movie.”

“Shame.” His steady stare was beginning to unnerve her. “I was sorry to hear you and Harvey broke up.”

“Grandpa, I told you, I’m with Roz now.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Still, he kept his eyes on Sabrina. She shifted from one foot to the other. He had never looked at her like that before. She didn’t like it. “I can’t get you to reconsider my invitation to join us?”

“Sabrina?”

Nick appeared at her side with his bag of books. His hand went to the small of her back. She could feel the tension radiating off of him.

“Nick, you know Harvey,” she said politely. “This is Harvey’s grandfather, Mr. Kinkle.”

“Nice to meet you young man,” Mr. Kinkle replied. He offered Nick his hand. Nick refused it. Sabrina looked to him in surprise and noted the set of his jaw.

“We should get going.” He slid his arm around Sabrina’s waist. “Sabrina doesn’t like to miss the previews.”

“It was good seeing you, Mr. Kinkle,” Sabrina remained rooted to the spot.

“Wonderful to see you again too, Sabrina,” he replied, his hawkish eyes back to her. “It looks like your friend is in a bit of a hurry.”

“We do have a movie to get to,” she agreed. Nick tugged at her join him.

“Easy Scratch,” Harvey warned.

“It’s okay, Harvey,” Sabrina said. She wondered what Nick’s problem was. She knew he didn’t like Harvey, but he had been around him before and never outright rude like this. In fact, she would bet he rather enjoyed pushing Harvey’s buttons by flaunting their relationship. “Enjoy your dinner.”

She allowed Nick to lead her outside. The door had barely closed behind her before she rounded on him.

“What in the Heaven was that?” she demanded. “You were rude and entirely out of line…”

“That’s him,” Nick cut her off with urgency. “That man? That’s the man Blackwood was talking to in the dungeons. The one he paid. That’s him.”

“Mr. Kinkle?” Sabrina scoffed. “No way, Nick. He’s Harvey’s grandfather…”

“That’s him,” Nick insisted. “I’m sure of it, Sabrina.”

“Maybe he looks similar…”

“I know what I saw,” Nick said stubbornly. “Think about it, Sabrina. Don’t the Kinkles run the mines?” Sabrina nodded, already seeing where Nick was going. “Makes sense that they would know about a secret passage in the mines, doesn’t it?”

Sabrina didn’t want to agree, but she couldn’t find much of an argument, not when Nick seemed so certain the man he saw was Mr. Kinkle. She couldn’t quite shake the way he had looked at her, either. Still, she didn’t want to accept it.

“But it’s a secret passage. He’s not supposed to know about it. Mortals aren’t supposed to know about the Academy, about us.”

“That one does,” Nick waved towards the diner. “But he’s a witch hunter. They do tend to know about us after all.”

“I’ve known the Kinkles my entire life. They are a lot of things, but witch hunters?”

“I’m sure of it, Sabrina. Maybe Harvey isn’t involved. Maybe he knows nothing about what dear old Grandpa is up to. But I know I saw him in the dungeons of the Academy. I know Blackwood gave him money and assured him he was sparing his ‘family.’ I want to know why. I think I know why.” He gave her a pointed look. “I want to prove it, and I want to stop him.”

A heavy silence passed between them. Sabrina looked through the window and spotted Harvey and his grandfather seated at a booth. Neither of them noticed her looking. She turned back to Nick. He was vibrating with energy, humming with determination.

“We’re not going to the movie, are we?” she asked.

“We’re going into those mines,” Nick confirmed. “Or at least I am. You up for it?”

“I’m not letting you go alone,” she informed him. Nick had a valid reason to suspect Harvey’s grandfather, even if she herself couldn’t wrap her mind around the idea that a family she had known her whole life could be deadly to her kind. “But Nick, are you sure…”

“I’m positive,” he cut her off again. “Grandpa Kinkle is up to something. With Blackwood. And whatever it is, it can’t be good.”

* * *

“This is probably a terrible idea,” Sabrina stated.

“It may not go down as our best one,” Nick agreed. “I can go…”

“Absolutely not,” Sabrina shook her head before Nick could even suggest he go alone. “I’m going with you.”

“We’ll be smart,” he said. “We have our magic – and Salem.” Salem meowed in agreement and Sabrina had to smile. It had been her idea to suggest summoning Salem to accompany them as he had already been through the passage. Nick had readily agreed. “We stick close together,” Nick continued. “No wandering off.”

“I can work with that.” They traded flirty smiles. “Are you sure you saw Harvey’s grandfather?” This made the third time she had asked since they left Cee’s and began their spur of the moment trek to the mines. “I just can’t believe…”

“I’m certain, Sabrina,” Nick said just as patiently as he had the first time she questioned it. He understood her doubt, but he was utterly certain the Kinkles were witch hunters.

“It just doesn’t make sense,” Sabrina said stubbornly.

“We will figure it out,” Nick said. He his own theory, one Sabrina wasn’t going to like. Until he had proof, he wasn’t going to bring it up. They reached the entrance of the mines and paused. “So this is it?” The opening was right there before them, wide and beckoning. “You would think it would be under some kind of surveillance or something. At least they would have some kind of door or barrier. This is exactly the kind of place mortals would sneak into to get into trouble.”

“People stay away from this place,” Sabrina told him. “Bad things have happened here.”

A chill went through her as she remembered the mine collapse, the agonizing hours of waiting, the horrifying howls of the family members who found out a loved one wasn’t coming home.

The way Harvey lost a part of himself when he learned Tommy was likely gone.

The events that happened afterward that would forever be a part of her memories, even centuries from now.

“Is it safe?” Nick asked. Sabrina gave him a look. “Is it structurally sound?” he corrected.

“It’s a mine. There is always a risk. But miners go to work here five days a week.”

“Okay then.” Nick took her hand, intent on leading the way into the mines.

“Wait.” Sabrina stopped him with a tug of his hand. She turned to him and placed her hands on his cheeks. She bowed her head. Her words were soft, but he still heard them. Her protection washed over him like a warm blanket. His throat tightened for a moment as he felt what it was like to be cared for. When she finished, he mimicked her, his hands on her cheeks, his forehead resting against hers. He said the same protection spell and kissed her forehead as though sealing it in.

“Ready?” he asked.

“I’m ready,” Sabrina nodded. Nick kissed her lips, short and sweet, and took her hand once more. They walked into the mines together, Salem leading the way.

They walked in silence for a while, the mines growing colder as they went deeper. Sabrina clicked on the flashlight they had bought at the hardware store after deciding not to go back to the mortuary. They would have to explain why they were leaving again, and it was easier to avoid that by summoning Salem and buying a flashlight.

Salem meowed.

“We’re close,” she interpreted for Nick.

“Good,” Nick sighed. “I don’t like being here.”

The whole thing left him uneasy. He wasn’t exactly claustrophobic, but the passages got narrower the deeper they went. The walls were literally closing in on them. He had lost sight of the exit a long time ago, had no idea how deep they were underground, let alone what they would find. Sabrina, however, seemed both fearless and resolute. That only made him fall for her that much more.

“It’s unnerving, isn’t it?” Sabrina admitted. “I’ve never been this deep into the mines.”

“You’ve been in here before?”

“Harvey brought me here to make out a couple of times,” Sabrina confessed. Nick made a face.

“How romantic.”

“It was at the time,” she shrugged, the appeal of sneaking off into the mines with her boyfriend long gone. “The Weird Sisters helped me teach Billy Marlin and a couple of his friends a lesson in here too.”

“Would it be the worst thing if this place mysteriously imploded one night when it was empty of workers?” Nick asked.

“For better or worse, it employees a lot of people in this town. Trust me, Nick. I’ve thought about blowing this place up a few times.”

“That’s where we’re different, Spellman. You are always looking out for someone else.” Sabrina glanced at him as they walked. It was hard to see with just the flashlight beam for light, but she thought he looked almost – regretful.

“I don’t buy that. I’ve seen a side of you that most definitely does look out for someone else.”

“You certainly do bring something out in me,” Nick agreed. He planned to say more, but Salem let out a series of meows.

“We’re here,” Sabrina announced. “This is where the tunnel dead ends with the passage into the Academy.” She shined the light directly ahead and all she saw was the rock wall of the mine.

“We need more light.” Nick muttered an incantation. A ball of light appeared before him. He guided it higher in order to shed more light on their surroundings.

“Where was that when we were stumbling through these tunnels with only a single beam from a flashlight to guide us?” Sabrina asked.

“It’s temporary,” Nick told her. “We have maybe five minutes before it fades away.”

“Then we should look around,” Sabrina decided. She stepped up to the wall. “How do we open it? Should we open it? We know where it leads.”

“Let’s open it,” Nick said. “Make sure it does lead to the Academy.”

Salem let out an indignant meow. Sabrina chuckled.

“Salem says it does.”

“I want to open it,” Nick said again. “Not that I don’t believe Salem,” he added for the familiar’s benefit. “But I want to know how to open it from this side – just in case. It should be safe to do so. Blackwood and most of the school are out in the woods for Lupercalia.”

“Then let’s open it.” Sabrina shined the flashlight around, searching. Nick set to work trying to find the magic that would open the hidden passage. “See anything?” she asked after a full minute passed in silence.

“Nothing yet,” Nick frowned as he thought about what else he could try to reveal the passage. Salem meowed again. He looked to the cat. Salem batted at a place in rock. Nick grinned. “Looks like magic isn’t needed to open it on this side.” He went to where Salem was digging at the wall. “Sabrina? Can you shine that light here?” His charmed ball of light was already fading. Sabrina did as instructed. Nick reached his hand into the crevice and found a level. He pulled and a grinding sound filled the space. A slab of rock lifted to reveal the dungeon hallway. “And there we have it.”

“So someone non-magical can access the Academy this way,” Sabrina realized.

“They can,” Nick nodded. His theory felt more probable now. “Let’s close it up and get the Heaven out of here.”

“We didn’t really find much, did we?” Sabrina asked as Nick hit the lever again and the slab began to lower. “All that traipsing through the mines to find nothing we didn’t already know.” Salem sarcastically meowed his agreement. “Oh hush, Salem.”

“It was worth a shot,” Nick said. “Let’s get out of here.” He reached for Sabrina’s free hand. They turned to walk back through the mines, but the beam of Sabrina’s flashlight lit up something on the wall.

“Wait.”

She turned the light on one of the side walls. A large, faded crest had long ago been painted on the wall. Nick stood beside her and for a few moments, neither of them spoke. They simply took it in. Nick could no longer keep his theory to himself.

“Do you know what that is?” He pointed to the heart of the crest where two daggers were crossed.

“It’s a family crest,” Sabrina said slowly. Something in the very back of her mind was trying to work its way to the forefront. She could feel whatever it was clawing its way to a place where she could remember it.

“That’s the universal symbol of a witch hunter,” Nick clarified, tapping the daggers with his pointer finger. “Their weapons have advanced – from daggers to swords to bows and arrows, guns – but the crossed daggers are where it all started for them.”

“I’ve seen this crest before,” Sabrina said as the forgotten memory suddenly lit up at the front of her mind. She reached for Nick’s arm to steady herself. “Harvey drew it a few times. It hangs in his house, too, on a wall in the living room.” She looked to Nick. “This is the Kinkle family crest.”

Nick knew she had accepted the same conclusion he had come to since Harvey and his grandfather walked into Cee’s.

“The Kinkles are witch hunters, Sabrina,” he said as gently as he could, his theory proven true. “Harvey’s grandfather has been hired by Blackwood to do – something.” He thought he knew what that something was, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it – for both Sabrina’s sake and his.

“Me,” she said, putting voice to his worries. “He’s been hired by Blackwood to kill me. Probably my entire family.” A chill went through her. “His grandfather kept staring at me at Cee’s. His visit wasn’t planned. He said he was here to teach his ‘boys’ the family business. I mentioned the mines and he said ‘among other things.’” Her shiver had nothing to do with the chill of the mines. “He’s teaching them to be witch hunters.”

“Come here.” Nick pulled Sabrina into his arms. She folded into them, seeking his comfort.

“They won’t hurt you,” he promised her. “I won’t let them.”

He found he meant it. The girl in his arms had somehow, someway, become the most important thing in his world. He would put himself between her and anyone or anything that tried to hurt her.

“But Harvey… Harvey wouldn’t…”

It was too much for Sabrina to comprehend. She had known Harvey Kinkle and his father most of her life. She had had a lot of her firsts with Harvey. Once upon a time, she thought she would be with him forever. Things had changed – she had changed – but she still never thought Harvey would physically harm her.

“Let’s get out of here,” Nick said once more. “We can talk about this when we get back to the mortuary.”

The mortuary felt like safety. His only goal in the moment was to get Sabrina to safety.

They didn’t talk much as they made the trek back through the mines. Nick took it upon himself to lead Sabrina out of there, to be the protector. He had the impression it wasn’t something she was used to. She was usually the one at the front of the pack, the one standing in the fire. He wasn’t used to being the protector, to putting someone besides himself first. But it felt natural with Sabrina. Right. And like if the roles were reversed, she would be the one leading him out of the mines.

The moment they were outside, Nick pulled her into his embrace again. He called for Salem who surprised Sabrina by springing onto Nick’s shoulder. The familiar had clearly accepted Nick into the fold. Nick teleported them back to the mortuary and led them inside. Hilda and Ambrose were there.

“Hi loves,” Hilda greeted happily. “How was the movie?”

“We didn’t go to the movie,” Sabrina told them in a dull tone.

“You two look grim,” Ambrose observed. “What happened this time?”

Nick and Sabrina exchanged looks.

“Zelda should be here for this,” Nick determined. “What are the odds we can summon her back from Lupercalia?”

“We can try,” Ambrose said with a bit of trepidation as he took in the warlock and his niece. “She will probably yell at us for it. She gets a bit out of sorts when we pull her away from Blackwood.” He stood. “I’ll give it a shot anyway.”

Nick turned to Sabrina and assessed her in the light. She was pale and worried.

“You’re cold,” he observed. “Let’s get you warmed up.” He guided her over to the fireplace. She didn’t say anything but leaned into him. He wrapped his arms around her and rubbed soothing circles on her back.

Across the room, Hilda watched them. She was rapidly softening towards the warlock. He seemed to care for her niece, and seeing Sabrina wrapped in his arms now, she thought the feeling might be mutual. So far, Nicholas had done nothing to prove her leeriness of warlocks warranted. If he truly cared for her niece, he was welcomed in her house.

“I just can’t believe…” Sabrina mumbled into his chest.

“I know.” He pressed a kiss to her hair. He didn’t understand relationships the way she did, but he could understand enough to know that she likely felt betrayed. It tugged at him that he, too, had betrayed her by making a bet with Prudence but, he tried to reason with himself, he had called it off. Because he cared about her. It would be okay now. “We will figure it out.”

“This better be good.” Zelda appeared in the doorway, Ambrose behind her. She strode into the room with purpose, eyes on Nick and Sabrina. “I had to come up with one Heaven of a lie to get away from Blackwood and I’m due back shortly. What did the two of you do?”

Sabrina pulled away from Nick. They shared a look before they faced Zelda.

“The Kinkles are witch hunters.”

Sabrina just said It. It was the easiest way – to just spit out the horrifying truth she had learned.

“Come again?” Ambrose questioned.

“The Kinkles are witch hunters,” Nick echoed. “I was in the dungeons last week…”

“Why?” Zelda interrupted. “That space is off limits to students.”

“Unless they’re being put in the witch’s cell,” Sabrina muttered. Zelda shot her a sharp look.

“I was planning to practice conjuring,” Nick confessed. “I sneak down there sometimes to practice spell work. I heard voices. It was Blackwood and an older man. Blackwood paid him half of whatever he owed him to do a task. He said the man would get the other half once the job was completed in full. Blackwood also said he was protecting the man’s family. When they parted ways, I followed the man’s footsteps. He disappeared through a secret passage in the dungeons.”

“There is no passage down there,” Zelda said. “I know every passage in and out of that school. There is none in the dungeons.”

“There is,” Sabrina said. “We sent Salem through it. It comes out in the mines. Tonight, we went into the mines and confirmed it for ourselves.”

“You went into the mines?” Hilda repeated. “Sabrina, that’s dangerous!”

“We saw Harvey and his grandfather at Dr. Cerberus,” Sabrina ignored Hilda. “I said hello while Nick was paying for his books. Mr. Kinkle kept looking at me kind of funny and he said something about being in town to teach the family business. When Nick showed up, he recognized Mr. Kinkle.”

“He’s the man Blackwood met with,” Nick told them. “We decided to go investigate the mines…”

“Of course you did,” Zelda muttered.

“And we found the passage. It can be opened from the mine side without magic. On our way out, we found an old family crest. The middle of it is crossed daggers.”

“The universal witch hunter’s symbol,” Ambrose spoke up. Nick confirmed with a nod.

“It’s the Kinkle family crest,” Sabrina said. “I have seen it hanging in Harvey’s living room, and he’s drawn it a few times.”

“Harvey is a witch hunter,” Ambrose said slowly as he processed the information. “There was always something about him…”

“Something that made you feel uneasy,” Nick nodded. He knew what Ambrose meant. “I felt it too. He hated me from the moment he met me…”

“That’s because you were with me,” Sabrina interrupted.

“I didn’t like him either,” Nick reminded her. “And not just because he’s your ex-boyfriend. There was something about him that put me off.”

“Witches and warlocks can sense witch hunters,” Hilda explained. “Although I never got that sense from Harvey. I wouldn’t think he has a bad bone in his body. He’s a bit odd, to be sure, but a witch hunter?” She shook her head as she reasoned with the news.

“Witch hunters come into their – I hate to call it power, so let’s go with their kill sense? – when they turn eighteen,” Ambrose pointed out.

“How old is Harvey?” Nick asked Sabrina.

“Seventeen, like us.” She looked grim. “He turns eighteen in a couple of weeks.”

“Explains the timing of grandpa,” Zelda stated.

“But Harvey’s dad, he’s never been…” Sabrina trailed off, thinking of Harvey’s father. The elder Kinkle was rough around the edges, an alcoholic. He wasn’t around much and it wasn’t like Sabrina spent a lot of time with them. She couldn’t defend him as much as she initially set out to. She barely knew him. “Well, he’s never been outright mean to me at least.”

“The Kinkles are witch hunters,” Hilda said again. “I can’t believe it.”

“We need to know why Blackwood has hired them,” Nick said. “And how many there are.”

“I would imagine he hired them to end the Spellmans,” Ambrose said plainly. “The question there is why.”

“Because he’s afraid of Sabrina.” Everyone in the room looked at Zelda. “Ambrose is on house arrest, Hilda is excommunicated, and he believes he has command over me.”

“Doesn’t he?” Sabrina challenged. “You’re at his beck and call.”

“I have been doing what needs to be done,” Zelda stated. “Sabrina, however, is exactly like her father and Blackwood loathed Edward in the end. He sees in Sabrina the same challenging spirit Edward had. She is the one that threatens to upend his plans.”

“What plans?” Hilda questioned. “What do you know?”

“I have my own agenda,” she informed the group. “Do you honestly think I would allow Blackwood’s way to be our way forward? I know it may look like I’m constantly thwarting your efforts, Sabrina, but I’m merely ensuring you don’t get yourself into trouble even I can’t get you out of while laying the groundwork, piece by piece, to reclaim the Academy.”

“You’re trying to take over the Academy?” Sabrina questioned.

“A hostile takeover.” Ambrose rubbed his hands together. “I’m in.”

“I’m trying to finish what your father started,” Zelda ignored Ambrose.

A heavy silence fell over the room. Nick felt like he was intruding on something.

“We need to figure out what, exactly, Blackwood is up to,” Ambrose spoke up. “No matter how close you are to him, Zelda, he’s not going to confide his reasons for hiring a band of witch hunters, especially if we’re right and it has something to do with our family.”

“I can do it,” Nick said as the idea came to him. “I can find out what he’s up to.”

“How, exactly, are you going to do that, Mr. Scratch?” Zelda asked skeptically.

“Blackwood offered to mentor me. I can have a ‘change of heart,’ ask him if the offer still stands.”

“An undercover agent,” Ambrose nodded. “I like it.”

“Well I don’t,” Sabrina stated. “You are not doing that, Nick. It’s too dangerous.”

“It’s dangerous to let Blackwood go unchecked,” Nick countered. “I can do this, Sabrina. I can play the double agent. I’m not afraid of Blackwood.”

“I will say it again – people end up dead when they get too close to Blackwood.” Her words were for Nick, but she shot Zelda a look to include her. “I don’t like it. I don’t want you that close to him.”

“I’ll be fine,” Nick assured her. “I’ll go to him tomorrow, spin my story. I’m a better warlock than any of those clowns he’s got following him. I’ll be in his confidence within the week.”

“Sabrina did say you were cocky,” Ambrose said. “But I agree – we need an inside man and Nick is the only one who knows what’s going on not named Spellman.”

“Sabrina’s right,” Hilda said. “It’s just too dangerous.”

“I’ll be fine,” Nick said again.

“He’s not going to like you spending time with Sabrina,” Zelda said. He could tell by the way she looked at him that she had already agreed to allow him to go undercover. “I would also guess he would try to have you tailed – in case you did try to sneak off to share things with Sabrina or one of us. Blackwood is a smart man. He covers all of his bases.”

“I would say Blackwood is the cocky one,” Nick said. “The more confident someone gets, the more likely they are to make a mistake.”

“You will need a safe way to check in with us,” Zelda continued.

“Wait, no, we didn’t agree that Nick was going to…”

“Sabrina,” Nick cut her off by taking her hand. He looked her in the eye. “I’m doing this. I will be fine.” He knew by the look in her eye that this conversation wasn’t over. He turned back to Zelda. “Any suggestions?”

“I’ll make Sabrina’s room a safe zone for you to teleport into.” She gave him a stern look. “And it can be sealed up at any moment.”

“That will do,” Nick nodded his agreement.

“I still don’t like this,” Sabrina stated. Nick squeezed her hand in reassurance.

“You will be staying here tonight, Nicholas,” Hilda said in a way that left no means for argument. It surprised him that it was Hilda making the offer. “I’ll make up a guest room for you.”

“Oh please, Hilda,” Zelda scoffed. “No need to go through the trouble of preparing a room when he’s just going to sneak across the hall to Sabrina’s room anyway.” Nick’s cheeks colored a bit. Sabrina, however, smirked at him. Zelda wasn’t wrong. “I need to get back to Lupercalia and keep up the charade that all is well. We will reconvene in the morning.”

She swept out of the room without another word.

“I’ll make us all a cup of tea to settle us down,” Hilda decided. “Chamomile and lavender, I think.” She made to stand.

“Roz!” Sabrina exclaimed.

Nick and Ambrose looked at Sabrina. Hilda looked over her shoulder as though expecting Roz to be standing in the doorway.

“What about Rosalind, dear?” she asked. Sabrina looked at Nick. It had come to her all of a sudden.

“She said she saw you and I…”

“In a cave with symbols,” Nick finished, understanding. “Is she having… Visions?”

“Wait, what?” Ambrose interjected.

“Roz has been having these spells where she goes all still and sort of leaves her body for a few moments. It happened here when she stopped by recently and it happened at the dance last night. I went to see her yesterday and she told me she’s going blind, but that she’s also getting these visions. She said they don’t make any sense, just shadows and images mostly, but she did tell me she saw Nick and I in a cave with symbols. It was the first time they were clear.”

“Oh dear,” Hilda wrung her hands. “That sounds like…”

“The cunning,” Ambrose finished.

“The cunning?” Sabrina repeated.

“It’s a curse,” Nick answered. “It causes the cursed go blind over time and forces them to see visions of future events. As their eyesight deteriorates, their visions get more vivid until they are essentially living constantly in the future, seeing what’s going to happen to those around them. It drives them mad eventually, having to live with the knowledge of what’s to come.”

“That’s horrible!” Sabrina exclaimed. She looked around the room. “How do we cure her?”

“It’s very difficult to undo another witch’s curse, Sabrina,” Hilda said gently. “Especially one like the cunning which is a family curse. It’s likely someone else in Rosalind’s family has been cursed and Roz has inherited it.”

“Her grandmother,” Sabrina said instantly. “She mentioned her grandmother had the same deteriorating eyesight.”

“I’m going to tell you to stay out of it,” Ambrose advised. “Fully recognizing that my request is falling on deaf ears.”

“She’s my best friend,” Sabrina stated.

“I’ve said what the logical thing is. You will do whatever you’re going to do.” Ambrose looked at Nick. “This is the way it is with her, just so you know. You tell her something, she hears you, she doesn’t listen to you, and does what she wants anyway. Then you’re left to help her get out of the mess she’s made.”

“Remember that time I sealed you in the attic for a full day?” Sabrina asked. “I’ll do it again, gladly. And make sure Zelda can’t come save you this time.”

“Enough you two,” Hilda said. “I’m going to go make that tea.” She paused for a moment. “Sabrina, come help me. You can slice the poundcake. I think we could do with a bit of a pick me up snack too.”

Sabrina grumbled, well aware that Hilda was trying to separate her and Ambrose before they antagonized each other too far, but she followed Hilda out of the room.

“What are we going to do about the Kinkles?” Ambrose asked Nick.

“What we’re going to do and what I’d like to do are likely two different things,” Nick stated.

“You would like to kill the whole lot,” Ambrose deciphered. “Except Sabrina wouldn’t like that.”

“Exactly,” Nick sighed. “Harvey hasn’t come into his senses yet. I’d say we could take him out now, before he does, but that would devastate Sabrina. She’s going to want to try to save him. Rehabilitate him, I guess it would be. Now she’s got her best friend seeing the future and her other friend dating a hobgoblin.”

“Theo is dating a hobgoblin?” Ambrose asked. “That’s a twist.”

“The guy’s name is Robin. He seems okay. I guess Theo couldn’t be left out of the weird.”

“Theo can actually see ghosts,” Ambrose told Nick. Nick’s eyebrows shot up.

“Seriously? What in the heaven is in the water in Greendale?”

“Technically, he sees his aunt Dorthea,” Ambrose corrected. “She was a bit like him. He doesn’t seem fazed by it. I only know because I overheard him telling Sabrina about it once. He thinks it’s a dream sequence, that she’s a sort of spirit guide. Which I suppose she is.”

“We have to stop Blackwood,” Nick said. “Whatever his plan is, whatever the cost is.”

“I agree,” Ambrose nodded. “I will do what I can from here, but Nicholas, like it or not, you’re in this now. You’re going to have to…”

Nick held up his hand to stop Ambrose.

“I’m in this,” he agreed. “I’m not letting anything happen to Sabrina. But Ambrose? Your house arrest is coming to an end. Very soon.”

“I know what you said, but forgive me for not buying it,” Ambrose replied. “I’ve gotten my hopes up one too many times for them to be dashed again. Not this time.”

“You will owe me a bourbon when I prove you wrong,” Nick stated.

“I will buy you a bottle of the best bourbon there is if you pull this off,” Ambrose countered.

Sabrina and Hilda returned with tea and poundcake. They settled around the coffee table, sipping their tea and talking minimally as the night’s events sunk in. Nick stayed close to Sabrina, occasionally reaching a soothing hand over to rub her back or squeeze her knee. They retired upstairs as soon as their cups were empty.

“You sure you want me to stay?” Nick asked once they were alone. “I can go…”

“Stay,” Sabrina cut him off. “I want you here.” She smiled a bit. “Besides, we would be spending the night together anyway if we were at Lupercalia.”

“True,” Nick agreed. “Okay then. I’ll stay.”

“Want me to get you something Ambrose’s to sleep in?” Nick shook his head.

“I want to test out Zelda’s free pass for me to teleport in and out of here. I’ll go to the Academy, grab a change of clothes, and come right back.”

“If you’re not back in fifteen minutes, I’m coming to find you,” Sabrina informed him.

“I only need ten.”

With that, Nick was gone.

In his absence, Sabrina blew out a long breath and tried to process what she had learned about both Harvey and Roz. It was a lot – too much for her to take in right then. She didn’t believe Harvey was capable of hurting anyone, let alone her and her family. As much as she didn’t want Roz to have an illness, she also didn’t want to believe her cursed. It was simply too much.

Salem meowed sympathetically.

“I know,” she sighed. “It is a lot to take in.”

She distracted herself by changing into pajamas, again choosing something not too revealing, but something she thought Nick might like. She put her focus on him and found herself anticipating his return. She was sure nothing too physical was going to happen tonight – she still wasn’t ready – but she thought it might be okay to push her boundaries a little, to lose herself in his lips.

He reappeared as she was settling cross-legged in the middle of her bed.

“I have quickly become a fan of this new convenience,” he stated as he took her in. She wore a red silk set that covered enough, but still made his imagination run wild.

“Use it wisely,” Sabrina half-joked, half-warned as he approached her. He, too, had changed into a pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. She knew he had chosen modesty for her benefit. He dropped an overnight bag at the foot of her bed.

“I’ll use it to my full advantage,” he countered with a smirk. He joined her on the bed and leaned into her pillows. “How are you holding up with everything? A lot happened tonight.”

Sabrina turned her body so she was facing him. He looked right at home resting against her pillows, one hand propped behind his head as he looked at her expectantly.

“I don’t think it’s all really hit me yet,” she admitted. She reached out and played with the hem of his shirt. She didn’t notice how his eyes darkened at the innocent but intimate gesture. “I’m going to wait for Roz to go to the doctor before I go any further down that path,” she decided. “Maybe this really is some sort of medical thing. Medical issues can be genetic…”

“Babe, I don’t think Roz’s issue is medical,” Nick offered gently. To his surprise, Sabrina smiled.

“Babe?” she questioned. Nick shrugged.

“It tumbled out,” he admitted. “I like how it sounded.”

“I did too,” she nodded.

“Maybe I’ll use it again,” he ventured. He caught her fingers with his. Their hands didn’t quite link together, but the touch was grounding all the same. “But back to Roz…” Sabrina sighed.

“I know you’re right,” she confessed. “But I feel like with Roz, I have more time, you know? More time to figure out how to help her. Harvey feels more imminent. Especially if he becomes a full blown witch hunter at eighteen.”

“I’m going to preface this by saying I’m not suggesting anything.” Sabrina waited for whatever he was about to drop on her. “But the only way to truly – truly – stop a witch hunter is to kill them.”

He expected Sabrina to react more. To rage at his insinuation or fight back. Instead, she just looked sad.

“I don’t want him to die.”

Nick sat up and cupped her check with his hand. He brushed his thumb across her cheek.

“I know you don’t. I know, too, that others may feel differently, that I can promise you to try to protect him, but that I can’t make that same promise for anyone else, nor can I promise to protect his family.”

Sabrina looked at him.

“You would try to protect Harvey?”

“For you,” Nick nodded. He absolutely meant it. “I don’t like the guy, but I know what he means to you.”

“Meant to me,” Sabrina corrected. “I still care about him, but not like that. Not anymore. I haven’t felt like that about him in a while.”

“Regardless, you don’t want anything to happen to him.”

Sabrina found she wanted to be in Nick’s arms. She wanted the comfort she sensed was there. She moved so she could fold herself into his side and was rewarded by him looping an arm around her. He leaned back into the pillows once more, her with him.

“I think he knows,” she said after a few moments of peaceful silence. “About me. At least on some level.”

“Didn’t you wipe his memory when you told him? Twice?”

Sabrina shifted and lifted her head so she could look at Nick.

“The first time I told him, right before I turned sixteen, he freaked out. Completely and totally freaked out. He went from calm, sweet Harvey to this conflicted, frantic Harvey. He couldn’t handle it. He couldn’t accept who I am. What if, deep down, he knew I was a witch, that he is supposed to hate me?”

Nick took is time forming an answer. He tucked her hair behind her ear and took her in. Even sad and tired, she was beautiful.

“I said it before, but if Kinkle can’t accept you for who you are, he doesn’t deserve you. Even if you weren’t a witch, I don’t think he would be worthy of you. You are strong and fierce and independent. I think you intimidate him.”

“I don’t intimidate you?” she wondered.

“You absolutely terrify me,” Nick confessed in a vulnerable moment. “But not because of who you are.” He ran his hand through her hair again. “Because of how you make me feel.”

Sabrina was sure her heart was going to beat out of her chest.

“Are you my boyfriend?” she asked because she couldn’t take not knowing anymore. “Is that what we’re doing?”

“I sure hope so.” Nick kept playing with her hair. “I don’t think I could accept anything else at this point.”

He meant it with every fiber of his being. He had been intrigued by Sabrina from the beginning. Bet or not, he would have pursued her. Bet or not, he would have fallen for her. He knew the right thing to do was to tell her about the bet, but he couldn’t bring himself to break the moment. He hadn’t experienced a lot of good moments in the last few years and he didn’t want to interrupt this one. He didn’t want to mar the moment in which the unbelievable girl in his arms became his.

“So that would make me your girlfriend,” Sabrina said.

“It most certainly would.”

Sabrina caught his hand that kept working through her hair and laced her fingers with his.

“It’s just me,” she told him seriously. “I know some witches share, but I don’t.”

“I’ve shared in the past,” Nick confessed. “But I won’t share you. You’re all I want.”

Sabrina beamed.

“I was slow to come around,” she admitted. “But I’m really glad I let myself get to know you.”

“I don’t know if you let yourself so much as I kept putting myself in your path until you had no other choice,” Nick mused. Sabrina’s laughter filled the room. “I’ve never really done this whole committed boyfriend thing, Sabrina, but you make me want to.”

Sabrina leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

They dissolved into a tangle of limbs as they kissed one another with all they had. Their lips explored the other, their hands wandered. Nick forced himself to be patient, to allow her to call the shots. Eventually, many minutes later, their kisses slowed. Sabrina pulled back the covers and motioned for Nick to join her. She wasted no time in reassuming her place on his chest.

“We’re going to figure all of this out,” Nick promised her as his hand brushed up and down her arm. She drew random shapes on Nick’s now bare chest. She didn’t recall when he lost his shirt, but she didn’t mind. She preferred it this way.

“I don’t like that you’re going to be so close to Blackwood.”

“I’ll be fine,” he assured her yet again. “I will find out what he’s up to.”

“Promise you will be smart?”

“I promise.” He kissed her hair. “Promise me you will do the same? And stay out of the woods?”

“I promise,” she echoed. She snapped her fingers to pitch them into darkness. “I’m glad you’re here, Nick.”

Nick’s arm tightened around her.

“I can’t think of a single place I’d rather be.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of you guessed the identity of the man in the dungeons correctly. I've never liked how the Kinkle family history was just sort of washed over. I do think Harvey, as a witch hunter by birth, would have those strong reactions to Sabrina's true identity, that conflict. And now we have Nick going undercover for Blackwood. He's got a lot of balls in the air, doesn't he? But at least his relationship status is confirmed. 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the Kinkles are involved with Blackwood. Nick is a double agent. We've got a lot going on...

“I still don’t like this.”

“I know you don’t.” Nick and Sabrina stood outside of the mortuary’s protection boundaries. He held her hands in his. “But we have to do this, Sabrina. We have to figure out what Blackwood is up to.”

“I know,” Sabrina sighed. “He’s not going to want you to see me.”

“Blackwood isn’t going to come between us,” Nick promised her. “He will either tell me to stay away from you or use me get more insight into you.” He brushed her hair back. “But he won’t keep me from you. I won’t let him use me to get to you.”

“How are you going to pull off being a double agent?” Sabrina wondered. “It’s too much, Nick. We’re asking too much of you.”

“First, you’re not asking. I volunteered. Second, I didn’t get my reputation by being straitlaced, did I?” That drew the smallest of smiles from her. “I’m going to be fine, Sabrina. We’re going to find out what Blackwood is up to and we’re going to stop him.” He gave her a hard look. “You’re staying away from Kinkle.”

It wasn’t a question. It was a hot topic of conversation at the breakfast table that morning. Nick had been trying to figure out how to make the request of her without sounding like he was telling her what to do when Zelda leveled the order in a no-nonsense manner that opened the floodgates for him, Hilda, and Ambrose to all agree with her. Sabrina had simmered and fought back, but in the end, she had begrudgingly agreed.

“I’ll stay away from Harvey,” Sabrina confirmed. “Besides, as far as he knows, I’m back at school anyway.”

“I doubt that story will work with him much longer,” Nick said. “The moment he learns you’re a witch, that coverup goes right out the window.”

“I know,” Sabrina sighed. She had thought about that too. “Be careful with Blackwood?”

“I will,” he assured her. He leaned in to kiss her. “I’ve got quick and direct access to you now, remember?”

“Then why are you teleporting out here?” Sabrina asked with a note of teasing.

“I figured it was the polite thing to do,” Nick shrugged as he placed his hands on her cheeks. “Because I’m planning to do this and it is nothing close to polite, so being outside instead of in your bedroom will keep me in check.”

His kiss was searing.

When he pulled away, she was breathless. He brushed his thumbs over her cheekbones and pressed a sweet kiss to her forehead.

“Talk to you later?” she breathed.

“Absolutely,” he promised. “I’ll see you soon.”

He disappeared. Sabrina lifted her fingers to her lips and smiled. She turned to go back inside.

“It’s true.”

She whirled around.

There, standing in the middle of the road several feet away, was Harvey. He looked worse for the wear, his clothes wrinkled, the bags under his eyes heavy, his hair disheveled. She was sure he hadn’t slept.

“Harvey!”

“It’s true,” he said again, voice shaking. “You’re a witch. Your family are witches. That Nick guy… He’s a witch, too…”

“Warlock,” Sabrina corrected automatically. “Nick and Ambrose are warlocks. Myself and my aunts are witches.”

“But… How…” Harvey couldn’t wrap his head around it. “How is that possible? How can you be a…”

He couldn’t say it.

“A witch,” Sabrina finished for him. “I’m a witch.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Harvey demanded. “Why didn’t you tell me you’re a witch?”

“I did,” Sabrina confessed. “Twice.”

“You didn’t…”

“I wiped your memory.”

She instinctively took a step back. She had never been afraid of Harvey before. Fear wasn’t a never a word she would associate with Harvey. But right now, he looked wild, desperate, and afraid in his own right. She didn’t know what he might do.

“You did what?” Harvey exclaimed.

Sabrina sighed.

“In the woods, just before I turned sixteen. Remember when I told you I was leaving for boarding school?” Harvey nodded, skeptical eyes on her. “I told you that after I told you the truth about being a witch. I wanted you to know. I wanted you to know so badly…”

“No,” Harvey shook his head, “you didn’t tell me. You didn’t…”

“I did,” Sabrina insisted. “You completely freaked out, just like you’re doing right now.”

“You’re a witch!” Harvey cried out. “That’s not normal, Sabrina!”

Something about that phrase struck her hard.

“It’s normal for me,” she fired back. “I’m a witch, Harvey. A powerful one. My aunts are witches. My cousin is a warlock. My father was a warlock. My boyfriend is a warlock…”

“So Nick is your boyfriend now?” Harvey interrupted. “You’re dating one of your kind.”

“I’m dating a good guy that cares about me,” Sabrina said. “Whether he’s a warlock has nothing to do with that. And who I’m dating has nothing to do with this conversation.”

“You said there was a second time,” Harvey prompted. “You claim you told me in the woods…”

“I did!”

“When was the second time?” Harvey pressed. “When did you tell me again?”

Sabrina didn’t want to answer. She was going to devastate him. She wished in vain that there was a way, any way, to avoid telling him the truth. She thought about where she was for a moment and took a few steps backward to ensure she was within the protection of the Spellman mortuary. She would have never – ever – thought she would need to protect herself from Harvey, but he was on the edge, but she didn’t want to take any chances.

“When Tommy died,” she admitted. “I brought him back to life…”

“No!” Harvey cut her off. “You didn’t… He didn’t…”

“Tommy died in those mines,” Sabrina continued. “You were devastated. I wanted to help. I brought him back to life. Except I didn’t understand the balance of life and things went so very wrong. Tommy was a shell of himself – an actual zombie – when you killed him. It was all my fault.”

Tears poured down her cheeks. Harvey stood before her, shaking with hurt and rage. She waited for what felt like an eternity for him to reply.

“My grandfather is right about you,” he stated. “I didn’t want to believe him. I didn’t want to believe that you and your family are witches, that you were evil. But he’s right. On all accounts.”

“We’re not evil…”

“You worship the devil!” Harvey cried. “You play with people’s lives. You played with my brother’s life!”

He lunged for her, to do what he didn’t know. It was his instinct, something deep inside him driving him forward even as a small voice told him she wasn’t dangerous. Sabrina stumbled back several steps, but Harvey, for the first time in his life, was denied entry to the Spellman mortuary. He ricocheted off the boundaries.

“Harvey, please!” Sabrina begged. “Just listen to me, okay? Talk to me! We can figure this out!”

“You lied!” Harvey accused. “You killed my brother! You’re a witch!” He stepped towards her again. Again, the boundary pushed him back. “What the hell is going on?”

“There are protections around the mortuary,” Sabrina shared. “Ancient magic that keeps those who wish us harm out.” Her eyes filled with tears. She vaguely wondered how Blackwood was able to cross their threshold. “You want to harm me. It recognizes that.”

“I don’t want to harm you,” Harvey insisted. He really didn’t. He didn’t know what he wanted. “I’m just – confused. I want answers. None of this makes sense!” He pulled at his hair, wishing it would help.

“Your family are witch hunters,” Sabrina told him. “Your grandfather is here to kill me and my family. At the request of our High Priest at that. You can help us, Harvey. You can help us find a way to stop innocent bloodshed.”

“Who is innocent?” Harvey asked. “You did the things my grandfather said you did. You admitted it!”

Tears poured down Sabrina’s cheeks, but she held Harvey’s eyes with her own. She willed him to see the girl he had once loved, not the witch he had come to know her as.

“Do you really want to kill me, Harvey?”

A heavy silence passed between them as Harvey considered her and she waited for his answer.

“No,” he admitted. “But it feels like I have no choice. There is something inside of me, something I feel like I can’t control. I’ve felt it brewing in recent weeks, especially when that boyfriend of yours is around. I want to attack. I want to rip him limb from limb.” Sabrina cringed at the idea. “I thought it was because he was your boyfriend, but now I know – I come from a family of witch hunters and I’m about to come into my power or whatever it is. I feel that sort of rage towards you, too, now. But I don’t want to hurt you, Sabrina. I don’t.”

“Then don’t,” Sabrina urged. “I’m still me, Harvey. I’m still Sabrina!”

“But you’re not,” Harvey shook his head. “You are an entirely different person!”

“You can get to know who I really am,” Sabrina tried. “I’m a witch, but I’m a good person. My aunts and my cousin are good people.”

“What about Nick?” Harvey asked. “Is he a good person? A good warlock?”

“He is,” Sabrina nodded. She now believed that in her very core, despite some of his antics. “Most of my coven are good people. They just happen to have magic in their veins. That’s the only difference between them and you. Father Blackwood? He’s not a good person. He’s not good at all.”

“He’s paying my grandfather a lot of money to get rid of the Spellman family,” Harvey informed her. “My dad is all bought in. We need that money.”

“Is that money, however much it is, worth the price of knowing you killed a girl you used to love?”

Her words hung heavy in the air between them. Harvey swallowed hard.

“I don’t know that I ever loved you,” he admitted. “I didn’t even know you, not really.”

His confession hurt, but Sabrina saw the truth in it. Harvey had only ever known a part of her. He had never known her as her true self. It was impossible for him to know if he loved her when he had never really known her.

“Help us,” she urged. “Help us find a way to stop Blackwood…”

“In exchange for what?” Harvey wanted to know. “The life of more of my family members?” He shook his head. “I can’t do that, Sabrina. I can’t choose between you and them.”

“Harvey…”

“You’re a witch,” he said as though he needed to remind himself. “A witch!”

“Sabrina!”

Zelda appeared on the mortuary stairs. Ambrose filed out behind her, Hilda on his heels. Harvey looked up at them as though seeing them for the first time.

“It’s okay, Aunt Zelda,” Sabrina called, eyes never leaving Harvey. “He’s leaving.” She willed Harvey to listen to her. “Go home, Harvey. Try to calm down and think through all of this before you make an irrational decision.”

“You’re a witch,” Harvey said again. He just couldn’t believe it. Witches weren’t real. Neither were warlocks or witch hunters. They were merely fictional pieces from comic books and movies. Except apparently they were very very real. He nodded towards her family. “So are they.”

Zelda started down the stairs.

“Go home, Harvey,” Sabrina repeated with more urgency. “You have no idea what my aunt Zelda is capable of when it comes to her family. Please. Go home before she has to defend us.”

“Mr. Kinkle, I’d listen to her if I were you,” Zelda said as she came to stand beside Sabrina. Hilda and Ambrose watched from the porch. “If it weren’t for her, I can assure you you would no longer be standing before my gate, breathing fresh air.”

It was a threat and Harvey knew it. With one more long hard look at the Spellmans, he turned and retreated down the path on foot.

“He knows,” Sabrina said as she watched him walk away. “About us. His grandfather told him everything. He said he’s had urges to hurt Nick, now to hurt me…” It was too much for her to take in. It didn’t seem real, the idea that her ex-boyfriend, the boy she had once loved so much she thought she would spend her life with him, would want to hurt her and the people she loved. “Blackwood is paying them a lot of money to kill us.”

“They won’t succeed,” Zelda assured her niece. She put a comforting hand on Sabrina’s shoulder and squeezed. “The Kinkles nor Blackwood.”

“What do we do, Auntie?” Sabrina was desperate. She wanted answers and a solution. Now.

“We wait for Nicholas’ report. And we stick close to home. We don’t poke around the Academy or give Blackwood any reason to suspect us. We carry on with life as normal as possible. We give no indication that we know anything.”

“But…”

“We give no indication that we know anything,” Zelda repeated. “We are Spellmans. We fight fire with hotter fire.” She drew herself up to her full height. “We will not go down to a band of witch hunters, nor to Faustus Blackwood.”

* * *

Nick inhaled through his nose and out through his mouth before he raised his fist and knocked on Blackwood’s heavy wooden doors.

“Enter,” came Blackwood’s voice.

Nick slipped into character as he pushed open the door.

“Father Blackwood,” he greeted. “Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice.”

“I must admit I’m quite curious as to why my best student has requested an audience.” He nodded towards the chairs in front of his desk. “Have a seat, Mr. Scratch.” Nick did so. He briefly thought of Sabrina, how he had left her just an hour earlier with a kiss and a promise that everything would be okay. He was doing this for her. “What brings you to my office, Nicholas?”

“I have had some time to think about your offer to mentor me,” he began. He had to be convincing. He had worked out his story in the early morning hours while Sabrina slept at his side, his arm draped around her waist. “As I’m sure you know, my father was a High Priest.”

“Yes, he was,” Blackwood confirmed. “I had the pleasure of meeting with him a few times. He was a talented warlock, something he clearly passed along to you.”

“He wanted me to follow in his footsteps,” Nick continued, ignoring what he thought was supposed to be a compliment. Blackwood didn’t do compliments. “He wanted me to become High Priest.”

“As most in that position would,” Blackwood agreed. “I can only hope the same for my sons one day.”

“I’d like to honor his wishes. But he’s gone. Without him, I’ve lost my mentor. If the offer still stands, I would like to take you up on the offer to serve in that role in his place.”

Blackwood tented his fingers – a habit Nick had noted the man had when he was peering down upon his prey – and considered him. It felt like an eternity before he spoke again.

“Should I accept you as my mentee, there are certain expectations.”

“Such as?” Nick asked. Sabrina came to mind once more.

“I require a certain level of devotion,” Blackwood told him. “You will attend additional Black Masses with myself and a select group of other warlocks known as the Judas boys. You will do what is asked of you, without question. The consequences of not doing so will be swift and harsh.” He leveled Nick with a cold stare. “You will not allow your personal relationships to conflict with your duties to me.”

“And what do I get in return?” Nick asked. Blackwood spread his arms wide.

“Me,” he answered. “My wisdom, my ways, my connections. You can go far, Mr. Scratch. Very far. As long as you align yourself properly.”

“Yes sir,” Nick nodded once. He was in. “I understand.”

“Are you sure?” Blackwood pushed. “I require utter loyalty.”

“You have it,” Nick assured him. An image of Sabrina floated through his mind once more, but his gaze never left Blackwood. “I’m prepared to devote myself to your service, no matter the cost.”

“Very well,” Blackwood nodded. “Consider me your new mentor, Mr. Scratch.”

“Thank you, Father.” Nick had to work to sound grateful. Internally, his stomach rolled at the idea. “I won’t let you down.”

“I’m sure you won’t, Mr. Scratch,” Blackwood drawled. It came out as a warning. “You will, of course, need to change your clothes.”

A set of folded clothing appeared on the desk between them. Nick recognized it as the all black uniform of the Judas Boys.

“Right away,” Nick promised.

“We have our first private mass at eleven tonight. Do not be a moment late.”

“I won’t.” Nick stood to leave the office. He made his movements appear natural, steady, when all he wanted was to rush from the room and away from Blackwood. “Thank you, Father Blackwood. Really.”

“I meant what I said about personal lives,” Blackwood said as Nick reached the door. “Have your fun if you must, but your loyalty is mine.”

When Nick was finally free of the office and in the safety of his own bedroom, he collapsed on his bed, exhausted from the last few days. There was sleeping under the stars with Sabrina, taking her to the dance, the Night Movers, their expedition to the mines and the knowledge that the Kinkles were witch hunters. Now, he was a Blackwood disciple, all in the name of figuring out how to stop him.

He needed a release.

Conjuring demons was out of the question. He had no doubt that Blackwood already had eyes on him, watching and waiting for him to leave his quarters. He would have to be especially careful when teleporting to Sabrina’s bedroom.

Sabrina.

The thought of her stirred him.

He pushed himself off the bed and went to his bathroom. He turned the shower on, stripped, and stepped under the hot spray. He had quickly rinsed away the dirt of the mines at Sabrina’s before he got into her bed, but he needed a solid shower anyway.

Under the water, he thought of her, how her lips felt against his, how they felt as they moved along his throat and over his chest. He thought of how that morning, while making out under her covers, she had surprised him by rutting against him. The first time had been pure instinct as his own hand had smoothed down her back and squeezed her backside. He couldn’t stop the groan that came from him and it had inspired her.

He had only encouraged her as she explored the sensation again, this time with intention. It had taken everything in him not to reach into her shorts to find out if she wanted him as much as he thought she did. Instead, he had slipped a hand under her shirt and felt her breasts for the first time. The whimpers that emitted from her told him she had liked it and he was eager to show her more, to be with her as she experienced bliss from another for the first time, the bet long forgotten.

His breathing quickened. He imagined what it would be like, to peel away her clothes layer by layer. In his fantasy, she wore those tights from the first night of Lupercalia. He undone first one garter strap, then the other before peeling them down her legs. Her bra went next and while he hadn’t actually seen her naked, his explorations from earlier had rendered enough of an image in his head that he could easily picture her before him. She kissed him as she pulled him down to the bed.

He kissed her long and deep.

“Fuck!”

His forehead rested against the tile as he came down and his breath evened out. He took his time showering and when he came out, a towel wrapped around his waist, he stopped short.

Sabrina sat on his bed, leaning against the headboard as she waited. She looked sad.

“Sabrina?” he questioned. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry,” she replied. “I know you weren’t expecting me. I knocked, but when you didn’t answer, I cracked open the door and heard the shower…”

“Don’t apologize,” Nick shook his head, still taking her in. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“Harvey showed up right after you left.”

Nick stood there for a moment, absorbing the news.

“Let me put something on.”

He went to his dresser and found a pair of gym shorts. With his back to Sabrina, he dropped his towel, revealing his naked body. She wanted to look away, but she couldn’t. She had felt him that morning, nearly came undone as she tentatively pushed her boundaries, but seeing him like this made her flush hot. She averted her eyes so he wouldn’t catch her staring when he turned back to her.

“Tell me what happened.”

Nick joined her on the bed as she filled him in on everything that had transpired with Harvey the moment he left. He cursed at the idea of Sabrina being surprised by the mortal, wished he had taken a moment longer to leave her so she wouldn’t face him alone. By the time she had finished telling him of Zelda’s promise to not go down to a band of witch hunters, his arm was around her and she rested against his bare chest like she belonged there.

He thought she just might.

“How did things go with Blackwood?” she asked once her story was exhausted.

“I’m now one of his disciples,” Nick said begrudgingly. “I have the outfit to prove it.” He nodded towards where the uniform sat forgotten on the armchair he had tossed in upon his return to his room.

“At least it’s all black,” Sabrina offered. “It’s in your color wheel.”

Nick chuckled at that and kissed her hair.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he admitted. “I missed you already.”

“You have spent most of the last three days with me.”

“Happy to make it four,” he said as his fingers trailed up and down her arm. “You are rapidly becoming the center of my universe, Spellman.”

“Oh?”

She looked up at him with those big brown eyes of hers and he was willing to do just about anything to keep them on him. He captured her lips with his.

“We did have a rather nice wakeup call this morning,” he reminded her.

“Hmm, that was nice,” Sabrina agreed. She returned his kiss. “I liked…,” her cheeks colored at confessing her thoughts, “that.”

“I won’t push you,” he said, forehead resting against hers. “But I liked that too.”

“Maybe we could… try some stuff?” Sabrina asked awkwardly. It was new to her to feel such powerful attraction, such blatant lust. Her hormones had spiked on occasion with Harvey, but now with Nick, it was like they were on a constant high and he was the only hope she had in any relief. She didn’t know much about the physical aspect of relationships, but she trusted Nick to explore them with. “If you want?”

“I very much want,” Nick agreed.

“Kiss me, then,” Sabrina prompted.

“Glady.”

They lost themselves in one another. Nick found himself under Sabrina and he liked the way her small body perched on his. He slid his hands under her shirt and pushed it upward. He was rewarded by her sitting up so he could remove it. He was purposeful as he trailed his kiss from her lips down her neck, and along her collarbone.

“Nick,” Sabrina sighed as she relaxed into his touch and found his neck with her own lips. He hooked her bra strap to pull it down her shoulder.

Guilt hit him like a sudden freight train appearing from a heavy fog.

He couldn’t do this.

He had ended the bet but that didn’t erase the fact that he had made it in the first place. She needed to know the truth before things went much further between them. It felt wrong, to be intimate with her before he cleared his conscience. He had never felt like this before – about someone else or so conflicted about his actions.

He had never _cared_ this much before.

“Sabrina.” He dropped his forehead to her collarbone and breathed her in as her hands worked through his hair. He relished in the touch. His mother had done the same thing for him when he was young and perched in her lap. He swallowed down the fear of confessing. He had to just come out with it. “I need…”

“Nicholas!”

Someone banged on his door. Sabrina pulled away and lunged for her shirt.

“Nicholas!” a male voice called. “If you’re in there, open up!”

“Dammit,” Nick muttered. He pulled on a pair of black jeans as he made it to the door. He looked back at Sabrina to make sure she was dressed before he opened the door just wide enough to greet whoever was on the other side. It was one of Blackwood’s Judas boys. “What?”

“Blackwood requires your services. You are to report to his office immediately.”

“Fine,” Nick grumbled. He noted how the boy tried to peer around him and into his space. Nick was careful to keep the door as closed off as possible to protect Sabrina. “I need to finish getting dressed. I’ll be there shortly.” He shut the door and turned back to Sabrina. She looked as disappointed as he felt. “Duty calls.”

“I don’t like this,” Sabrina said yet again.

“I don’t either,” Nick admitted. “But it has to be done.” He pulled on his Judas uniform while Sabrina righted her shirt and smoothed down her hair. “How do I look?” he asked once he was dressed.

“Like you’re playing a part,” Sabrina told him. She didn’t like how the Judas uniform looked on him. It just didn’t fit with who she knew him to be. She stood and went to him. “I know you wear a lot of black, but this…”

“It feels as wrong as it looks,” Nick admitted. She reached to pull him into her arms and he came willingly. “But it’s temporary and for a higher purpose.”

“Please, Nick, be careful.” She pulled away from him enough to look up at him. “With witch hunters and who knows what else after me and Roz’s blindness and visions… I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you, especially because of me.”

Nick pressed a kiss to her forehead in an effort to comfort her.

“I’ll be okay,” he promised her. He sealed that promise with a soft kiss.

“Oh, what were you going to say?” she asked. “Just now, before the knock on the door? It sounded like you needed to tell me something.”

Nick debated for a moment. He knew he needed to be honest, but he also knew he needed to report to Blackwood immediately. He couldn’t drop a bomb like that and walk away. So instead, he cupped her cheeks and kissed her forehead once more.

“I was going to tell you how much I adore you,” he said. It was the truth after all. He adored her. He thought he might even feel – other things – for her, but he hadn’t explored those feelings yet. “Because I do, Sabrina. I adore you.”

She pulled him back into a searing kiss.

“I’m falling for you too, Nick,” she confessed when she pulled away. Nick teetered. He wanted to ditch Blackwood entirely and say there with her, in her arms, just holding each other. She brought him back to reality. “You should go. It’s better for you to go to Blackwood before he comes calling.”

“You’re right,” he sighed. “I’ll check in later, okay?”

“Please,” Sabrina nodded.

“Stay here for a few minutes,” he advised. “Let me get to Blackwood’s office before you leave. He’s already warned me about spending time with you and I don’t want to give him any incentive to act.”

“It’s a twisted version of Romeo and Juliet,” Sabrina mused.

“But with a much better ending,” Nick promised.

They shared one more kiss before Nick disappeared.

Sabrina sat on the edge of his bed to wait and exhaled a deep breath.

She had told Nick she was falling for him.

He had no idea just how true that was.

And it terrified her as much as it excited her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Harvey didn't take that well, did he? Can't really blame him though... Nick however. He really sold Blackwood. Used the father card. Brilliant. And he was so close to telling Sabrina the truth... 
> 
> Let me know your thoughts on this one! We're in the middle of it all now!


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was so surprised by the reaction to Harvey last chapter. Made my day reading all of those comments. Thank you. <3

Sabrina glanced over her shoulder one more time before she stepped out of the Academy bound for home. She had hoped to see Nick, but he was nowhere to be found. She had briefly seen him that morning – he had surprised her by pulling her into an alcove to kiss her good morning – but that was it. Between her classes and whatever Blackwood had him doing, their paths hadn’t crossed again.

As soon as she stepped into the cover of the woods, she teleported to the front of the mortuary. She had struck a deal with first Nick and then her aunts that she would teleport to and from school and stay out of the woods as long as the Kinkles and Blackwood were a threat. One day in, she hadn’t broken that promise. She wasn’t willing to place bets on how long that would last.

“Don’t move.”

She stopped in her tracks. Ambrose stood just inside the gate. He wore a grin wider than the Cheshire Cat’s.

“Why?” Sabrina wanted to know. “What happened?”

“Watch this!”

He theatrically stepped through the gate.

“Ambrose!” Sabrina cried. “No! You’re violating…”

“No, I’m not!” He did a little gig and held up a piece of paper. “I’m a free man, Sabrina Spellman!” He grabbed Sabrina by the hands and spun around with her like children playing Ring-Around-the-Rosies. “I’m free!”

“But… Wait… What… How…?”

Ambrose let go of Sabrina’s hands. She stumbled a few paces before regaining her balance. Ambrose waved his paper.

“I’m free!” he exclaimed again. “Full pardon! The Antipope delivered this,” he rustled the paper, “himself. Signed it right there at our dining room table! Hilda was beside herself – she got to serve the Antipope chocolate cake!”

Sabrina’s mind tried to catch up with the news.

“Why?” she asked because it was the first question that came out of her mouth. “Why did he pardon you? Zelda has tried everything… You have twenty-five more years!”

“Had,” Ambrose corrected, still beaming. “The Antipope decided fifty years was enough of a sentence for a warlock of my caliber.”

“There has to be a catch,” Sabrina was skeptical. “The Antipope doesn’t just pardon people.” She knew enough about the council to know they tended to stick to their archaic rules which included holding firm to their sentences.

“There are far less warlocks than witches,” Ambrose reminded her. “All he asked in turn was that I prove myself worthwhile of my freedom. I intend to do just that.” He gave her a gallant bow. “And now that you are home and aware of my good news, I’m off to the Academy. I plan to walk right through the front doors and memorize Zelda’s face when she sees me supposedly breaking my house arrest for all of eternity.”

A smile played at Sabrina’s lips at the image. She wouldn’t mind seeing Zelda’s expression herself.

“You are finally able to leave the confines of this house and the first thing you do is go to the Academy?”

“On business,” Ambrose confirmed. “Can’t let Nicholas have all the fun, can I?”

Sabrina frowned at that. She knew Ambrose too well.

“You’re going to go join Blackwood?”

“I can be useful,” Ambrose nodded. “For the first time in a very long time, I can do something besides prep dead bodies and read books.”

“It’s dangerous, Ambrose. Nick is already in too deep…”

“You’re worried,” Ambrose acknowledged.

“I keep saying it, but people that get too close to Blackwood end up dead.” She shook her head. “It’s been a day and Nick is already too close. Blackwood called him to his office yesterday and Nick barely had a moment to teleport here late last night to say he was okay before Blackwood summoned him again. I only saw him for a minute this morning. Now you are getting involved.”

“Nicholas is a formidable warlock, Sabrina,” Ambrose reminded her. “I don’t think you know just how formidable he is. I’m an above average warlock in my own right, but Nicholas is something else entirely. He can take care of himself. So can I.”

“I know I can’t change your mind,” Sabrina sighed.

“You can’t,” Ambrose confirmed. “Blackwood has threatened my family, Sabrina. You understand that better than anyone I know.”

“I do,” she nodded. She herself wanted to be doing a Heaven of a lot more than waiting around for the next sign of trouble. She simply didn’t know _what_ to do. She had to rely on Nick and now Ambrose for that intel. “Be careful?”

“Always. And I will tell your warlock you’re worried.”

“Thanks, Ambrose,” she smiled.

He winked at her and held out his pardon.

“Take this inside for me?” She accepted it. Ambrose made a show of cracking his knuckles. “Let’s see if I can still do this.”

With a pop, he was gone.

Sabrina blew out a breath and went inside. She found Hilda in the living room, idly knitting a scarf.

“Hi love,” she greeted. “How was school?”

“Long and boring,” Sabrina announced. “I hear you had guests?”

“Can you believe it?” Hilda’s eyes shined. “Ambrose, free! The Antipope here! It was quite the afternoon. Zelda is going to be furious she missed his visit.” Hilda seemed rather proud of herself for interacting with the Antipope while her sister was nowhere to be found. “He loved my chocolate cake, asked to take some with him. I sent all we had left and a few cookies as well. Muffins, too.”

“He really pardoned Ambrose?” Sabrina questioned. “Just like that?”

“Well it wasn’t ‘just like that,’ was it?” Hilda wondered. “It has been fifty years after all. Zelda has worked tirelessly to get his sentence overturned. The Antipope said she had nagged him enough and he was curious enough that he decided to review Ambrose’s case. He liked what he saw and thought a warlock such as Ambrose should be free.”

“So Ambrose runs off to join Blackwood’s gang as another spy.”

Hilda gave her a critical look.

“Would you expect anything else?”

“No,” Sabrina admitted. “I just don’t like it.”

“Me either,” Hilda agreed. “But it is the Spellman way.”

Sabrina bit her lip. She had wondered, in quiet moments, why Hilda was content to be in the background when she was powerful in her own right. She decided now was a good time to ask.

“What about you?” she asked. “You are here, holding down the fort, while Ambrose and Zelda join up with Blackwood and I trounce around getting in and out of trouble in the name of saving the day or righting a wrong.”

“I prefer it this way,” Hilda told her. “Your father and Zelda were both older than me and out trying to take on the world. They were like our father. I stayed close to home with our mum. I got her healing abilities. Edward and Zelda? Barely able to heal a scrape. Me? I can bring someone back from the brink of death. Fighting back isn’t always loud and flashy, Sabrina. Sometimes it is providing those you love with a safe place to land when it all becomes too much and patching them up when they need it.”

The idea of that warmed Sabrina. She saw the value in what Hilda was saying. She was ultimately their safe place, the one they could come home to. She fed them, cared for them. She was their constant, no matter how crazy things were around them.

“That’s kind of beautiful,” she said.

“I think so,” Hilda nodded. “But to be clear, I will most certainly be on the front lines if anyone – or anything – threatens my family.”

Sabrina smiled.

“I have no doubt about that.”

“And I do think I owe you a bit of an apology,” she continued. Sabrina frowned.

“For what?”

“I let my past experiences with warlocks crowd my judgment of Nicholas,” she admitted. “He is perhaps a bit suave, but he does seem to be rather crazy about you.”

Sabrina couldn’t help but smile again.

“I misjudged him too,” she admitted. “There is a lot more to him than that slick warlock he presents as at first.”

“He treats you well?”

“He does,” she confirmed. She worried her lip, thinking of just how well he treated her. “He told me he would try to protect Harvey. I know he wants Harvey gone – a witch hunter is a witch hunter to Nick – but he knows I care about Harvey and wouldn’t want him hurt. He’s willing to protect a witch hunter for me.”

“That is rather noble of him,” Hilda observed. It was more than noble. It was something only a warlock with true, intimate feelings would do.

“I don’t know what to do about the Kinkles,” Sabrina continued. “If it were any other family, I know Zelda would have already swooped in and gotten rid of them. I know she is holding off for my benefit – and to find out what Blackwood is truly up to.”

“Right on all accounts,” Hilda agreed. “We will find a way through this, Sabrina. We always do.”

“I suppose,” Sabrina sighed. She checked the time. “I’m going to call Roz, find out what the doctor told her today.”

“And if she is cursed, we will figure that out, too,” Hilda promised her.

Sabrina excused herself, made a snack, and took it upstairs. She called Roz and talked with her for nearly an hour, then settled in with her homework. Just she and Hilda were home for dinner, and once she did their dishes, she returned to her essay. It was well past ten o’clock when Nick appeared in her bedroom.

“Nick!”

“Hey,” he greeted. She could tell right away that he was exhausted. Still, he smiled as he approached her. “I finally got away.” He leaned down to kiss her. “It has been a long day.”

“Are you hungry?” she asked as he settled on the bed next to her. “Did Blackwood at least allow you dinner?”

“I’m starving,” Nick admitted.

Sabrina was on her feet.

“Come on. Hilda made a roast. There are plenty of leftovers.”

Nick didn’t protest. Blackwood had kept him busy through lunch and he had only managed a muffin for breakfast. He would eat absolutely anything put in front of him at this point. He followed her downstairs and allowed Sabrina to make him a plate of leftovers. He all but devoured the plate of roast and vegetables over egg noodles, bread rolls on the side.

“Where is Hilda?” he asked as Sabrina produced pie from the fridge. “I know Ambrose and Zelda are at the Academy.”

“She went to help Cee close up the diner.” Sabrina offered him a fork and kept one for herself. They ate pie right out of the tin. “It’s just us for now.”

“Best thing I have heard all day,” Nick declared, making Sabrina laugh a bit.

“I talked to Roz,” she ventured.

“And?” Nick raised her eyebrow.

“She’s scheduled for more tests. Her doctor confirmed she is losing her eyesight, but they had to schedule an MRI, a CT scan, all these other tests.” A chill went through her. “It’s scary, Nick. Especially if it is a curse. I’m letting her go through all of those tests when it could be something our kind did.”

“I know it’s hard,” he said gently. “But it is smart to let her doctors rule things out. Mortals aren’t like you and I in that way, Sabrina. They get diseases. They get sick. Let them make sure there is nothing like that going on with Roz.”

“What if it is the cunning?” she wondered. “How do we break the curse?”

“I don’t know,” Nick admitted. “It is incredibly difficult to to break another witch’s curse. But if there is a way, we will find it.”

“Anything you can share on Blackwood?” she continued.

“He is as vile as I thought he would be,” he reported. “He had me putting together baby furniture without magic.” Sabrina snorted at the idea. “I was basically Lady Blackwood’s bitch all of yesterday, but at least she was relatively nice about it. I suppose making me do basic mortal tasks was his idea of some sort of initiation. He had me up before the sun this morning, but at least that was for a ritual.”

“What kind of ritual?”

“Honestly? I don’t think it was an actual ritual. It was – weird.”

“Weird how?”

Nick shook his head.

“We weren’t honoring the Dark Lord. Honestly, I couldn’t figure what we were doing, who our words of praise were directed to. It was a lot of standing in the circle and chanting. Tonight, we had a private Black Mass. Except it wasn’t Black Mass like we know it. He went on and on about Judas.”

“Judas,” Sabrina repeated. “The disciple who betrayed Jesus.”

“One in the same. The others didn’t see a difference – they are too dense – but I saw it and so did Ambrose. We caught each other’s eye a couple of times, but we were careful not to be too friendly with one another.”

“So Blackwood accepted Ambrose into the fold then.”

“With minimal questions asked,” Nick confirmed. “Honestly, it is pretty incredible that Ambrose got pardoned. He was giddy over it at the Academy.”

“It seems too good to be true,” Sabrina confessed. She had fretted about it all evening. It seemed so unlikely that the Antipope would simply show up and wipe away the rest of Ambrose’s sentence. “I’m waiting for the other foot to drop.”

“The way I see it – and Zelda and Ambrose too – is that the Antipope finally came to his senses,” Nick told her. “He knows what we know – Ambrose is an incredibly gifted warlock, and a Spellman at that. It took him five decades, but he got around to doing the right thing in the end.”

“There is always a cost,” Sabrina said. “I have learned that.”

“Ambrose is free,” Nick told her in an effort to ease her worries. “He was wasting away holed up here. He deserves this.”

“I can’t help but worry,” Sabrina said. “Everyone I care about is in danger or is seeing things or is a witch hunter.”

“We are in the middle of it right now,” Nick acknowledged. “But it won’t be like this forever. We will get through this and then we will… Crash another mortal dance or something.”

That made Sabrina smile a bit.

“You do make a decent dance partner,” she told him.

“I would ask you to dance right now, but Hilda’s pie has my full attention.”

Sabrina laughed.

“I really do think you would leave me for Hilda if she didn’t have Cee.”

“Never,” Nick shook his head. “But for my own knowledge… Do you know how to cook?”

Sabrina raised an eyebrow.

“Implying gender stereotypes are you, Scratch?”

“More like I absolutely cannot cook. So if you can’t cook either, we will need to live with Hilda the rest of our lives or get really good at conjuring food and ordering takeout.”

“That sounds like you are anticipating us being together for a long time to come,” Sabrina observed. She couldn’t quite hold back the smile fighting to break across her lips.

“Oh I am,” Nick assured her. He stabbed the last bit of pie and held it out to her. She closed her lips around it and chewed. “I worked too hard to get you to give me the time of day to let you go anytime soon.”

“You certainly were persistent,” Sabrina said, her insides all warm from his confession that this thing between them felt like it might last a long time. “I will admit it. I’m pretty glad you were.”

Nick leaned in to kiss her. He insisted he clean up his dishes since Sabrina made him dinner. When he turned back to her, she noted again how tired he was.

“You need to get some rest,” she determined.

“I do,” Nick agreed. “I’m exhausted.”

“Stay here tonight.”

“I want to,” Nick said as his arms slipped around here. She folded into his arms and her floral shampoo filled his nostrils. “Dear Satan, I want to stay with you tonight.”

“Then stay. My aunts won’t mind. You know that.”

“What if Blackwood summons me?” Nick asked.

Sabrina made a face. He was right. If Blackwood summoned him, he couldn’t not be at his call.

“I don’t like this.”

Sabrina wondered how often she was going to say that particular phrase.

“No, I don’t either,” Nick sighed. “But Blackwood is testing my loyalty. If I don’t come when I’m called, he will get suspicious.”

“He’s trying to keep us apart.”

“He is,” Nick confirmed. “But it won’t work.” He kissed Sabrina’s hair. “You are stuck with me, Spellman. Even if I need to sleep in my own room tonight.”

“I could sleep in your room…”

“You know you can’t,” he sighed. The Academy had charms around the dormitories that prevented witches and warlocks from spending the night together. He didn’t understand it – they found ways to be together anyway – but the charm persisted. He kissed Sabrina’s nose when she made a face at the knowledge he was right.

“Watch out for Ambrose?” she requested.

“I believe you made a similar request of Ambrose,” Nick said.

“I feel better knowing the pair of you are looking out for each other,” she admitted. “I know you can’t be obvious about it, but this whole undercover thing you two are doing is easier for me to deal with if I know the pair of you have each other’s backs.”

“I will look out for him,” Nick promised. “But Blackwood isn’t going to win.”

He left through her bedroom portal, but not before they made out with one another standing in the middle of her room for a few minutes.

Once he was gone with a promise to see her the next day, Sabrina tried to return to her essay.

But all she could think about was the fact that Nick, Ambrose, and Zelda were all in the belly of the beast.

And that she thought she might just be falling in love with Nicholas Scratch.

* * *

Nick appeared without a sound.

He stole a few moments to simply take Sabrina in as she slept soundly. Salem sat up from his spot at the end of her bed, but the familiar didn’t alert his charge to his presence. He resisted the urge to go to Sabrina. He would, soon, but he had to focus on the task at hand first.

He slipped through the mortuary like a thief in the night. At Ambrose’s attic door, he tapped three times. The door opened almost right away.

“How was it?” Ambrose asked as he shut the door behind Nick.

“Horrible,” Nick answered. “I didn’t enjoy a moment of it.”

“How is the boy?”

“He will live.”

One of Blackwood’s Judas Boys had betrayed Blackwood, at least in Blackwood’s eyes. Nick had no idea what the boy had done, but that he been one of three called upon to aide in the punishment. It had turned his stomach and he had done everything he could to make the punishment less severe without giving away his double agent status. He had risked his neck to make sure the boy was at least in his dorm and as comfortable as he could be while he healed.

“And how are you?” Ambrose prodded.

“I’ll live,” Nick said wryly.

“I hear that,” Ambrose sighed. He perched on his desk chair and motioned for Nick to take a seat on a nearby trunk. It wasn’t easy, being Blackwood’s flunky. It had only been three days for Nick, less for Ambrose, and they were both entirely over it. “So what do you reckon?”

“It’s like he’s plotting a new religion,” Nick said. “Sabrina commented on how Judas was the betrayer of Jesus and it clicked for me – that is exactly what he is doing. Except instead of betraying the False God’s son, Blackwood plans to betray the Dark Lord.”

“That won’t end well,” Ambrose commented.

“No, it won’t,” Nick agreed. “I think his babies are tied to it somehow. He is merely laying the groundwork until those twins are born.”

“Agreed. He had me researching newborn rituals today. ‘Any and all’ to quote. I would rather not rehash some of what I found.”

“I can imagine,” Nick made a face. He had come across a ritual or two in his day that turned his stomach. “Any insight into what Blackwood is up to regarding your family?”

“He wants us out of the way,” Ambrose answered. “That is as far as I have managed to get, which isn’t far at all given that we already knew it, but it has only been two days.”

“It’s been too quiet,” Nick said. “I’m waiting for the next attack.”

“Sabrina has been compliant about sticking close to the mortuary,” Ambrose pointed out. “I don’t think she’s done it by choice and she is likely biding her time before she strikes out on a mission of some sort, but it is a lot harder for him to attack if she is here. He won’t harm her at the Academy either, not with all those eyes to see it.”

“I’m going to give her this.” Nick reached into his pocket and removed an amulet. A long gold chain held a small piece of black stone. It wasn’t fancy, but it was effective.

“Black tourmaline,” Ambrose noted. “For protection.”

“I have charmed it so all she has to do is touch it and say my name,” Nick shared. “I have a similar one.” He reached into his shirt and pulled out his own amulet. “I will be able to get to her in an instant.”

“I approve.”

“I have also charmed a coin in my pocket that will let me know when Blackwood summons me. It will give me the freedom to be away from the Academy more.”

“With Sabrina more,” Ambrose accurately stated. “But that’s some clever magic, Scratch. On both accounts.”

“I made you one, too.” He took a coin from his pocket and flipped it to Ambrose.

“You are too good to me, Scratch,” Ambrose said as he pocketed it. “I don’t know how you pulled off what Zelda Spellman couldn’t, but I owe you.”

“Just help me bring Blackwood down and keep Sabrina safe,” Nick said. “We will call it even.” He stood then. “Pass along the update to Zelda? Or rather the non-update, such as it is?”

“I will,” Ambrose promised. He considered Nick. “Thank you, Nicholas. For doing this. I know it can’t be easy, being asked to essentially be a spy.”

“It’s what needs to be done,” Nick said. “But for the record? I wouldn’t do this for just anyone. In fact, Sabrina might be the only person I would do this for.”

“I honestly believe that,” Ambrose nodded.

“And don’t…”

“Tell Sabrina,” he finished with a half grin. “Or Zelda.”

“Yeah,” Nick agreed. “That.”

He left Ambrose and slipped back down the hall. Once in Sabrina’s bedroom, he toed off his boots and pulled his shirt off. He hesitated for just a moment before he stepped out of his pants as well. Sabrina stirred as he settled in beside her.

“It’s me,” he said as he wrapped her in his arms and pulled her to his chest. “Go back to sleep.”

“Nick?”

“It’s me,” he confirmed again. “I’m going to sleep here for a few hours.”

“What about Blackwood?”

“Taken care of,” he assured her.

Sabrina didn’t ask any further questions. She rolled over and curled into his embrace. It was only a few hours later when Nick found himself begrudgingly awake. He ran his hand through her hair.

“Sabrina?”

“Mmm…”

“I need to get back to the Academy.”

“It’s still dark out.”

“I know,” Nick sighed. “But Blackwood asked the disciples to report to his office at 6AM.” He kissed her jaw. “Wake up for me. I only have a few minutes and I have something for you.”

Sabrina forced herself to move off of him and turn on the bedside lamp. Salem meowed in protest. He jumped up from his spot and slinked under her bed where he could sleep in peace. She turned back to Nick.

“Okay, Scratch. I’m up.” He had gotten out of bed and was fishing through his pant pockets. She noted the amulet around his neck. “What’s that?” she indicated it as he returned to her with something balled up in his hand. “Some token of devotion Blackwood makes you wear?”

“Pretty much the opposite, actually.” He held out his hand and revealed an amulet similar to his. While his was on a long black cord, the one in his hand was on a delicate gold chain. “I want you to wear this at all times. If you find yourself in trouble, take the stone – black tourmaline – in your hand and say my name. I will be right there.”

“It summons you to me?” Sabrina clarified.

“It does,” Nick nodded.

“And would it work in reverse?” Nick had to smile. Of course she thought of that.

“It would.”

Sabrina slipped the amulet around her neck.

“Black tourmaline – that’s for protection.”

“Any stone – any object, really – would work, but black tourmaline feels appropriate.”

Sabrina leaned in to kiss him.

“How did you get away?” she wondered.

“Amulets aren’t the only thing I charmed. There is a coin in my pant pocket that will warn me when Blackwood summons me. Between that and this nifty little ability to teleport into your room, I will be able to spendmore time with you.”

“I like the sound of that,” Sabrina smiled.

“Good.” Nick leaned in and kissed her. “But unfortunately, I do need to leave you now.”

Sabrina watched him pull on his clothes. It was good, seeing him in his own clothes instead of that awful Judas uniform.

“I still don’t like this.”

“I know you don’t.”

“You’re still going to do it.”

“You know I am.”

He came back to her. He wanted to crawl back into bed with her, but there would be plenty of time for cuddling in bed together once Blackwood was out of the picture. He cupped her face in his hands and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

He almost told her.

He almost told her he loved her right then and there.

But he didn’t. Saying those words terrified him. He didn’t even know if what he felt was love. Love was a foreign emotion, one he hadn’t felt in a long time, one he had never felt for someone aside from his parents. But when he looked at Sabrina, when he felt her in his arms, ‘love’ was the word that came to mind.

“Will I see you tonight?” she asked. “If not at school?”

“It might be late, but I’ll come.” Nick picked up her amulet and held it up for her to see it. “I’ll always come.” He tucked the necklace into the shirt she had slept in. “Keep that out of Blackwood’s sight, okay?”

“I will,” Sabrina promised. “Use yours if you need it, Nicholas.”

“I will.” As a last resort. He wouldn’t put Sabrina in danger to save himself. “Go back to sleep, babe. I will see you later.”

He pulled himself away from her and teleported out of her room. He slipped into the Academy, careful not to be seen. He wished Zelda could make an exception for his room, so he could teleport directly from his room to Sabrina’s, but the moment she circumvented the Academy’s security wards, Blackwood would know.

Back in his room, he heaved a sigh and turned on the shower.

Time for another day as a double agent.

* * *

Sabrina kept her eyes peeled for Nick as she walked through the Academy on her way to her first class of the day. Unfortunately for her, it was Prudence that fell into step beside her.

“What do you want, Prudence?”

“Your cousin and your boyfriend are up to something.”

“What makes you say that?” Sabrina played dumb.

“Oh stop it,” Prudence called her out. “You know as well as I do there is no way those two would be following my father around on their own accord.”

“They are powerful warlocks,” Sabrina reminded Prudence. “They can be swayed by the opportunities Blackwood offers.”

“And you’re letting them?”

“As though I tell Nick or Ambrose what to do,” Sabrina scoffed. She cut her eye at Prudence. “Besides, I hear Ambrose being off of house arrest is working out well for you.”

“That’s none of your concern,” Prudence sniffed. “You still have your chastity belt cinched tight?”

“That’s none of your concern,” Sabrina fired back. “What should be your concern is finding out why your father isn’t allowing you in his little circle of admirers. Despite your personality flaws, you are a formidable witch, Prudence. Any father should be proud to have you as his daughter.”

“My father is proud of me,” Prudence stated. Her words lacked her usual authority. “He has his reasons for having his boys.”

“He is really proud to be expecting twin boys,” Sabrina continued. “Never mind that he has a daughter. A daughter that I exposed, if you remember correctly.”

“Who can forget that dinner full of shenanigans?” Prudence grumbled. “And why is everyone so obsessed with those twins?”

“Jealous?” Sabrina knew she was poking the beast. She didn’t care. It felt good to do something, if that something was riling up Prudence, something that could come back to bite her in the end. “Thought you were a bit old to be jealous of pending siblings.”

Prudence stepped in front of her to stop her in her tracks. The taller girl glared down at her, but Sabrina held her ground.

“You walk around here as though you know more than the rest of us, Sabrina Spellman, but you know very little. You need to be very, very careful or this sweet little mortal tainted world you have created for yourself may well come crashing down.”

“I’m just trying to help you,” Sabrina pushed back. “You would be dead if it weren’t for me. Feast of Feast, remember?”

Prudence found she couldn’t argue that point. To any onlooker, she had looked proud and pleased to be the chosen one. But inside, she had been terrified, desperate to live, to see what her life could be. She had been on the verge of telling Sabrina about the bet, but she stopped herself. For now. Sabrina had, after all, saved her life.

“You are going to meet a messy ending, Sabrina Spellman. Mark my words.”

“Is that a threat, Prudence?” Zelda appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

“Sabrina and I were just talking,” Prudence took a step back from Sabrina.

“You know, like we always do,” Sabrina said, glaring at Prudence.

“Sabrina, I believe you have class?” Zelda gave her a pointed look.

“Right. Intermediate spell casting. Where I will, once again, learn nothing.”

She turned on her heel and stomped away. When she was gone, Zelda looked to Prudence. Prudence tried to maintain her tall, dignified stance, but there had always been something about Zelda Spellman that made her not cower, exactly, but begrudgingly submit in respect.

“Sabrina is right, you know.”

“That I would be dead without her? I admitted it.”

“Well, that is true,” Zelda nodded. “But I meant what she said about Blackwood.”

“What are you implying?” Prudence wanted to know.

“Sabrina has been afforded the luxury of growing up in a family of strong women. A family where witches aren’t treated like doormats. She is often reckless, but her passion is what drives her. She believes in you, Prudence. As do I. But you get in your own way. And you question the wrong people.”

With that, Zelda mimicked Sabrina’s movements and walked away.

Prudence blew out a long breath.

The Spellmans were the bane of her existence.

And yet, somehow, they were always right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Personally, I've always thought the show portrayed Hilda as a little bit more of a backseat witch when compared to Zelda. She certainly has her moments, but I wanted her strengths to come out here. 
> 
> Ambrose is FREE! And right away, Nick and Ambrose, getting in deeper and deeper. But look at Nick, finding workarounds. That ending conversation with Zelda and Prudence though... 🔥🔥🔥
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember Amalia? 
> 
> Angst (and some drama) ahead.

Sabrina was supposed to be studying, but she tapped her pen against her notebook, thinking. Today was the day Roz was supposed to have several tests done. She needed to know. She grabbed for the phone on her nightstand.

“Hello?” Roz answered.

“Roz, it’s me,” Sabrina greeted. “How did it go?”

“Hi, Sabrina,” Roz answered, amusement clear in her tone. “Good to hear from you.”

“I got right down to business, didn’t I?” Sabrina made a face.

“You really did,” Roz confirmed. “But to answer your question, I have been poked and prodded and scanned all day long. I should have the results in a day or two.”

“So you still don’t really know anything?”

“That’s correct,” she sighed. “More waiting.”

“How are you holding up?” Sabrina wondered.

“I’m resigned,” Roz admitted. “There is not much else I can do besides wait. Harvey is here. He brought the work I missed at school. We’re going to have a study session and eat pizza. That will help keep my mind off of things.”

Sabrina’s heart clenched at the mention of Harvey. She had given him space, time to cool down, but she couldn’t ignore the itch to confront him once more much longer. She nearly offered to come over but remembered just in time that she was supposed to be at “school.”

“I won’t keep you then,” she said instead. “I just wanted check in.”

They talked for a few more minutes before the call ended. Again, Sabrina tried to go back to studying. But her mind kept drifting to Harvey. She was certain if she could just _talk_ to him, she could work things out. She could hear her aunts downstairs, heard Ambrose come in and go straight to his room. If she left, they would ask questions.

But, she remembered, she could leave without them ever knowing…

Even Salem was out of the room, off chasing rodents in the garden or something. Sometimes she wondered if he knew he wasn’t actually a cat.

She had said she wouldn’t do anything reckless. This would count as reckless. But it was _Harvey._ He wouldn’t hurt her, witch hunter or not.

Her mind made up, she teleported out of her room.

She positioned herself at the edge of the woods where she could see Roz’s house. She waited for what felt like forever, her senses heightened for any sign of danger around her. Finally, well after dark, Harvey emerged. She averted her eyes as he and Roz shared an intimate goodbye. When he was finally in his truck and out of sight of Roz’s house, she acted.

His tire punctured from the accuracy of her spell. It let out long, loud hiss before it started to flap around the rim as Harvey slowed down. She saw Harvey smack the steering wheel in frustration before he pulled to the shoulder of the road and turned his flashers on. She made herself wait until he was out of his vehicle and surveying the damage before she stepped into view.

“I can fix that.”

Harvey spun at her voice.

“What are you doing here?” he hissed.

“I want to talk,” she said boldly. “I know this is a lot to take in…”

“You are a witch,” Harvey said, emphasizing every word. Sabrina was starting to think he should have that phrase tattooed on his forehead. “I’m a witch hunter. Never mind the fact that you have lied to me – to all of us – your entire life. I’m supposed to join my family in a hunt to kill you...”

“But you don’t want to kill me.”

“I don’t,” Harvey admitted. “Of course I don’t! But I feel it, Sabrina. I feel this thing inside of me. It’s not as strong when I look at you, but when I’m around that Nick guy? I want to rip him apart. It feels like something inside of me starts to bubble. I’m not a violent guy and yet whatever this is…” He couldn’t understand the surge of something that flowed through, something that was so unlike the person he believed himself to be. “I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to resist it, Sabrina. I’ll be eighteen in just a few days. I’m not a killer, but with this thing… I don’t know what’s going to happen to me!”

“You’re right,” Sabrina took her opening. “That is not who you are, Harvey. You are not a killer – of me, my family, Nick, or anyone else in my coven.”

“I’m expected to be,” Harvey reminded her. “My grandfather expects me to be. Sometime soon, I’m expected to join the hunting party when they come after you, your family, and anyone else who tries to stop us.”

“You don’t have to,” Sabrina tried. “You can make your own choices, Harvey. You don’t have to join the so called family business. You can choose who you are!”

Harvey looked pained.

“I don’t want to be a witch hunter,” he admitted. “But I can’t wrap my head around the fact that there are witches in Greendale, that they are real. It’s all too much!”

“What can I do?” Sabrina pushed. “How can I help you?”

“Leave me alone,” Harvey said right away. It was easier to think when she wasn’t standing in front of him, reminding him that everything he thought he knew about her, her family, his family, even Greendale, had been a lie. “Let me figure this out.”

“But…”

“I’m not going to tell your secret,” he cut her off. “Or secrets, I guess I should say, because you have done nothing but lie to us.” Sabrina’s eyes watered at the truth of that statement. “But I don’t want to be around you right now, Sabrina. So leave me alone. Let me change my tire and go home in peace.”

She wanted to argue. She wanted to tell him all the reasons he should stay right there and listen to her. She wanted to know everything he could tell her about his grandfather’s plans and find a way to save her family, her coven, but alsp Harvey. But she could sense his fraying nerves. It wouldn’t end well if she insisted he continue this conversation.

“I’ll fix your truck.” She twirled her finger and the tire repaired. Harvey looked pale at the show of magic. The display of it made whatever it was inside of him tingle, almost like an alert system that told him a witch was near. “I did it anyway, that was the least I could do.”

“Thanks,” Harvey muttered. “I think.”

He offered no more. He got back into his truck, turned it on, and spun up dust as he took off for home at a speed a little too fast for the old dusty road.

Sabrina stood and watched until Harvey disappeared over a hill. She knew she should teleport home, but she needed some fresh air, a few minutes of freedom. It felt like prison, teleporting to the Academy and back each day, no more, no less. It was making her restless and she found it harder and harder to think in the confines of her room now that she wasn’t allowed to leave it as freely as she once had. She set out toward home, deciding she would walk for a few minutes to clear her head before she teleported back to her room.

The first few minutes were peaceful. It was still cold out, but despite the chilly temperatures, she could sense the faintest of hints of spring trying to stake its claim. She felt herself calming a bit, her thoughts slowing down to a rate where she could process them. The black tourmaline of the amulet Nick gave her felt cool against her chest, tucked safely into her clothes and out of sight. The thought of it there, of the effort he had put into it, made her smile.

A stick snapped in the woods just off the path. Sabrina paused mid-step and listened. She didn’t hear anything out of the normal. She assumed it was a deer or something and continued walking.

She heard it again.

She stopped.

She noticed then that the woods had gone silent. There were no small creatures scampering, no birds whistling, not even a rustle of leaves. She knew enough by now to know that wasn’t a good sign – it meant danger or at the very least, bad weather.

“Is someone there?” she called out. Her heartbeat picked up. “Hello?”

Nothing.

“Hello?” she tried on more time. More silence. She decided it was time to teleport home.

Before she could finish the incantation, a large blur of brown erupted from the woods. She screamed and fell to the ground, rolling out of the way just in time. She scrambled backward and hurried to her feet.

“Unholy shit,” she breathed.

There, towering over her, was Amalia. She was wearing a yellow dress and a bonnet and walking on her hind feet like a human. The wolf howled at her.

“Amalia,” she said as calmly as she could. “What are you doing here?”

The wolf howled again.

“Nick isn’t here,” she shook her head but didn’t take her eyes off of the familiar. “He’s at the Academy. You can’t go there, but I can tell him…”

The sound that emitted from Amalia this time was more of a roar than a howl. She took several steps towards Sabrina. Sabrina stood her ground. She would reason with Amalia, help her see they were on the same side.

“It’s okay, Amalia,” she tried. “Nick told me about you. He told me you kept him alive after his parents died. That’s such an incredible thing…”

Another roar.

“Nick loves you…”

Amalia lunged for her. Sabrina was quick to throw up a powerful shield. Amalia bounced off of it, but she wasn’t deterred. She set to pacing, squaring off with Sabrina. Sabrina didn’t dare look away.

“I don’t understand,” she said to the wolf, still working to reason with her. “I don’t know why you want to hurt me. I care about Nick…”

Amalia charged again. Sabrina threw up another shield. This time, she felt the reverb as Amalia ricocheted off of it.

“Amalia, please! I don’t want to hurt you! We can figure this out…”

Her roar echoed through the woods. Sabrina tried to stay calm.

“Amalia, please. Nick would be devastated if you hurt me…”

Amalia lunged again, this time so fast she caught Sabrina’s arm as Sabrina dodged her, not able to cast a spell fast enough to protect herself. She hit the ground hard and felt pain surge through her wrist. Amalia rolled several paces but was fast to get to her feet, her bonnet knocked off her head, her dress smeared with dirt. Sabrina shot a stunning spell at her, but it didn’t slow her.

She did the only thing she could do.

She tossed up another shield and pulled her amulet out of her shirt. She held it tight.

“Nick!”

The shield faded and Amalia moved again. This time, Sabrina’s stunning spell hit her between the eyes. It dizzied the massive wolf for a moment, giving Sabrina a chance to recast a shield.

“We don’t have to be enemies, Amalia…”

“Amalia!”

Nick was there.

Still dazed, Amalia turned to face Nick.

Nick kept his eyes on Amalia even as he made his way to Sabrina. The wolf turned with him. Low growls emitted from her.

“You can’t do this, Amalia,” Nick said to her, his voice steady. “I won’t let you hurt her.”

Amalia growled back.

“Because I love her.”

Sabrina’s breath caught. Her wrist throbbed and blood poured down her arm from where Amalia’s claws had landed but heard Nick’s confession all the same. She wondered if he meant it.

She thought he might.

Amalia absolutely roared.

“Last chance,” Nick warned. “I don’t want to do this, Amalia, but I can’t let you continue to hurt people that dare to get close to me.”

Amalia went for him this time. Sabrina screamed and shot the first spell that came to mind at Amalia as she engulfed Nick with her big body. The spell bounced off of Amalia. Sabrina aimed another spell, remembering that like Salem, Amalia was protected by a magic unique to familiars. She had to hit Amalia in her few vulnerable spots. Just as she began her spell, aiming this time for the opening of her ear, Amalia let out one last roar and went limp.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still as Sabrina processed what had happened.

Amalia was dead.

Nick’s movement underneath Amalia’s big body drew Sabrina out of her trance.

“Nick!”

She ran to him and helped him heave Amalia’s body off of him. He was filthy, covered in blood, a gash above his forehead. He looked as shocked as she felt.

“Are you okay?” She kneeled next to him and gently brushed her fingers along his cheeks as she surveyed him for damage.

“Sabrina.” He reached for her and she allowed him to pull her into his arms. “Sabrina.”

“Are you okay?” she asked again as her uninjured hand worked through his tangled hair. She tried to pull away to examine him, but he held firm. “Did she hurt you?”

“I’m fine.” He finally pulled back and took her in. His eyes widened. “You’re hurt though. What did she do to you? What happened?” He grabbed her wrists to hold her still so he could better inspect her. She hissed. “What is it?” he pulled his eyes away from the gash on her arm only to realize the wrist he was holding tight to was swollen. “Oh my Satan, Sabrina!”

He let go quickly.

“I’m okay, Nick,” she assured him. She was sure her wrist was broken, but it wasn’t anything Hilda couldn’t heal with a few well-placed words. “I’m more worried about you.”

He had killed his familiar. That in and of itself had to be traumatic, but Amalia had been more than his familiar. She had been his family, the last link he had to the life he had once known. Amalia had kept him alive when the worst had happened.

“I’m fine…”

“Nick,” she said gently, “I know you’re not.”

The weight of what happened hit him all at once. He sucked in a shaky breath as he took in Amalia’s dead body. He fought back tears, trying to be strong for Sabrina.

“I stopped her heart,” he said in a low shaky voice. “I had to. She was dangerous. She would have killed you. She was going to kill me, just to keep me from being with you. She said if she couldn’t have me, no one could. She would have killed me, then finished you off. I had to do it, Sabrina. I had to…”

“Shh,” Sabrina whispered as she pulled him to her to calm his rambling. “I have you.”

She didn’t dare tell him it was okay. Amalia was a terrifying awful creature, but she was still his familiar. She was still his family. Despite what she had become, she meant something to Nick.

They sat there for several minutes, Nick crying softly into her neck, Sabrina doing what she could to comfort him. When he finally righted himself, he brushed away his tears and felt shame for showing so much emotion.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I’m being ridiculous.”

Sabrina frowned at his choice of words.

“No, you’re not,” she shook her head. “You loved Amalia.” She brushed his messy curls away from his forehead. “You are allowed to be upset.”

Nick looked to the body laying a few feet away. With no external damage, she could have been sleeping had he not known the truth. He had caressed her heart with an electric current and she never stood a chance. It hadn’t exploded, hadn’t burst open, nothing dramatic. It had simply -stopped. A quick, painless death. He took in her matronly outfit as his eyes raked over her. He had never seen her wear clothes before. That was new. He wondered what her intentions had been, what she was trying to prove, where her mind had gone. He would never know.

“Let’s take her back to the mortuary,” Sabrina suggested. “Hilda and Ambrose can help prepare her for burial.” It felt right to her, to treat the familiar as one would a person. “Or she can be cremated if that’s what you prefer. You don’t have to decide right now.”

She just knew they couldn’t stay there, in the woods, Amalia dead beside them, open and vulnerable to whatever evils Blackwood or the witch hunters might thrust upon them.

“I’ll take her to my family home,” Nick decided. “I’ll bury her there.”

Sabrina nodded. That made sense to her.

“Okay. We will go when you’re ready.”

“Now,” Nick decided. He wanted to get it over with. “I’m going now.”

“Why don’t we wait…”

Nick wasn’t listening.

“Ask Ambrose to cover with Blackwood for me? Until morning?”

“We have to stop by the mortuary first,” Sabrina said. “We need to clean up and let someone know where we are going. But of course I will ask him.”

Nick shook his head.

“I’m going by myself.”

Sabrina frowned.

“No, Nick. I’m coming with you.”

“I need to do this alone,” he insisted. “Please, Sabrina. Go home. Ask Ambrose to cover for me. I need to go to Kutná Hora. I need to bury her.”

“But…”

“I don’t want you there,” Nick informed her. He knew he was being harsh, but he was feeling more than he had ever felt – love, vulnerability, sadness, worry, crushing heartbreak, anxiety… It was all too much. He needed space. He needed to get away from Sabrina’s softness and grieve in solitude where he was free to act out, to let whatever came up free. “I need to be by myself.”

He only felt worse as he watched her try to hold back her tears. He expected her to argue more, but instead, she leaned forward and kissed his forehead. She reached into his shirt and pulled out his own amulet.

“You’re not alone, Nick.”

She pressed a kiss to the stone that was warmed by his heat and let it fall to his chest. Entirely against her will, she got to her feet.

“I’m here, Nick,” she said softly. “Don’t push me away.”

He couldn’t look at her when she teleported away. Once he was alone, he bowed his head. A single tear rolled down his cheek as he placed a hand on Amalia’s still warm body.

“Lunacae magicae.”

* * *

Sabrina didn’t even bother attempting to sleep.

It had been hours since she left Nick in the woods with Amalia’s body. Her fingers had wrapped around her amulet at least a dozen times, tempted to summon Nick to her. She stopped herself every time. She needed to let him do whatever he needed to do, grieve however he needed to grieve.

The guilt had set in since she returned home. She had relayed what happened to Ambrose who had readily agreed to cover for Nick and had escaped to her room from there. Once alone with her thoughts, it had dawned on her that she had, of course, done the very thing he and her family had asked her not to do – left the mortuary and gone to Harvey. Had she done what was asked of her, she wouldn’t have been in a position to get attacked by Amalia in the first place.

So really, all of this was her fault.

All because she couldn’t resist the urge to try to fix things herself.

She had noted how hard it seemed to for Nick to allow her to be there, to comfort him. He had entirely shut down and looked embarrassed by his show of emotion. That made her angry. She damned society for making it taboo for a male, warlock or otherwise, to show emotion, to feel. She didn’t think it was a sign of weakness for him to grieve and she desperately wished she had told him that while he tried to push her away.

She hadn’t even attempted to process everything that had happened with Harvey. That didn’t seem important in the moment.

With what had to be her hundredth heavy sigh since she got home, she flipped the page of one of her father’s journals. She had read all three of them several times now, knew there was at least one more in the sanctum, but she wouldn’t press Nick to get it for her anytime soon. He was already doing too far much for her and now she had cost him his familiar, his only family.

A soft crack filled the space.

She startled and sat up. Nick was there, covered in dirt and dried blood. He looked utterly defeated.

“Nick!”

She scrambled off the bed but stopped just short of throwing herself at him. She wasn’t sure if he wanted her to.

“I buried her.”

His voice was hoarse. She noted his swollen, puffy eyes.

“How are you?” she asked carefully. Nick just shook his head. He looked entirely lost as he stood there before her. “Why don’t you take a shower?” she suggested. “You left pajamas here…” She went to her dresser where she had folded them and tucked them in her own pajama drawer after Hilda hand laundered them. “There are towels in the cabinet.” He accepted the pajama bottoms from her. “Have you eaten? I can get you something…”

“I’m okay.”

He offered no more. He turned and disappeared into her bathroom. Sabrina stood there, watching the closed door until she heard the water turn on. In need of something to do lest she barge in there and offer to wash the dirt away for him in an effort to comfort him, she went downstairs and to make them each a cup of tea. Hilda was still awake.

“Oh, hi love,” she greeted. She was covering cinnamon rolls to proof overnight with the intention of baking them in the morning. “I thought I heard your shower turn on. It’s a bit late isn’t it? Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

“Nick is here,” she shared. Hilda’s expression shifted into one of sympathy. She had been home when Sabrina shared the news about Amalia with Ambrose. Thankfully, she didn’t ask too many questions, nor had either of them commented on her escape in the first place. She had no doubt that lecture was waiting in the wings and would likely be presented by one Zelda Spellman. She would deal with that when it came.

“How is he?” Hilda inquired.

“Devastated. He said two sentences when he arrived. I sent him to the shower. He was filthy. He said he didn’t want anything to eat, but I thought he might like some tea.”

“Of course,” Hilda agreed. “Perhaps a few biscuits as well? Something light. I made some shortbread just yesterday. He needs something on his stomach.”

“I’ll take a few upstairs,” Sabrina nodded. She put on the kettle and busied herself with adding a few shortbread cookies to a plate.

“You really care for him, don’t you?” Hilda asked as she worked.

“I do,” Sabrina confirmed. “I resisted, but it feels like falling for Nick was unavoidable.

“He treats you well?”

Sabrina couldn’t tell if it was a question or an observation. She answered anyway.

“He does.” She leaned against the counter as she waited for the kettle to whistle. “He’s protective, Auntie. I didn’t think I would like that, having someone there to risk themselves for me. I have always been the one who has to protect others. I’m not saying Harvey wouldn’t have risked himself for me, but Nick… it’s like the most natural thing in the world. He doesn’t try to stop me, but he also doesn’t let me get too far off the path.” She scuffed at the floor. “Honestly, Hilda? It’s nice to be with someone I don’t have to hide from. Someone who accepts me for who I am.”

Hilda felt any last reservations she had about Nicholas Scratch float away.

“As much as I like that he protects you, it’s that last part, that he accepts all parts of you, that I think matters the most.”

Sabrina smiled softly.

“Me too.”

The kettle whistled. She poured their cups of tea while Hilda slipped a few more cookies onto the plate. Just as Sabrina prepared to walk upstairs, Hilda stopped her.

“Which of those mugs belongs to Nicholas?”

“I don’t suppose it matters. They both have chamomile.”

“Give him the blue one,” Hilda directed. She took something out of her apron pocket and sprinkled it into the mug. “This will help him sleep tonight. I didn’t add too much, in case that awful Blackwood summons him, but it will take the edge off.”

“Thank you, Hilda,” Sabrina smiled. “I’ll make sure he gets the blue one.”

Upstairs, Sabrina had just settled the tray on her nightstand when Nick emerged from the bathroom. He brought with him a burst of steam and a clean scent. His damp hair was unruly and his pajama bottoms hung low on his hips.

“I didn’t have a shirt.” He sounded a little more like himself. Sabrina blushed a bit and tugged on the hem of the t-shirt she wore. It was his. She had spotted it in her drawer when changing earlier and reached for it without thought. She liked how it fit, how even after it went through the laundry, it still smelled like Nick.

“If you want it…”

Nick shook his head, taking in how she looked in his simple black t-shirt. He had never seen another in his clothes and in the moment, he never wanted to see her in something else again.

“Please, keep it on.”

She went to him, but stopped just shy of reaching for him, unsure of what he wanted or needed after the way he had pushed her away earlier. To her relief, he pulled her in. His embrace was tight, desperate. He held her to him as though afraid she might leave him.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized softly. “For Amalia, for being a dick earlier…”

“Shh,” Sabrina soothed. “You have nothing to apologize for.”

“I do,” Nick insisted, even as he held her tighter. “I was weak…”

Sabrina pulled back and looked up at him, hands on his shoulders.

“You absolutely were not weak,” she informed him. “You loved Amalia. She was your family. You had to do a hard and horrible thing. You are allowed to feel, to be upset that someone you care about is gone. Don’t ever apologize for being vulnerable, Nick. It is not a weakness. It is a strength. Loving someone is a strength.”

A single tear fell from each of his eyes. He looked away in an effort to hide them from her. All of it was overwhelming. When Sabrina summoned him, he had been gripped with a sudden fear so vice like it had hurt his chest as he teleported to her side. It had quickly been replaced by first confusion and then a fight response to protect Sabrina. There had been the brief moment of sadness the moment he recognized the only way to stop Amalia was to kill her.

And then Amalia was dead.

Amalia, the last link he had to his old life, no longer had breath in her lungs.

A strange conflict of emotions had sunk in around him, heavy and final, as he realized what he had done while the girl he would do anything for tried to comfort him, even when she herself was hurt, both of them bloody, Amalia’s body right there beside them. Sabrina had been so soft, so gentle and kind. Soft, gentle, and kind weren’t emotions usually directed at him. The reality of everything he felt, from grief to love, felt crushing as they sat in the middle of the woods together and the only thing he could do in the moment was run.

So he had. He had pushed her away and teleported to his family cemetery without here where he had dug a hole to bury Amalia the way a mortal might, needing the physical labor to distract himself from feeling.

Now, Amalia buried and him safe, sound, and clean in Sabrina’s bedroom, the only thing he could do was hold the girl he knew he loved.

It was all he wanted to do.

He remembered then that she had been hurt.

“Your wrist…” he pulled away and made to survey it.

“Hilda healed it,” she assured him. “The gash on my arm too. I’m as good as new. “Her fingers lightly touched the gash on his forehead. It was raw and angry, but thanks to his shower, now clean. “We will have her look at this in the morning.” She gave him a critical look. “Unless it needs to be looked at now?”

“It’s fine.” He wanted to pull her back to him, but she resisted when he tried, still surveying him. He avoided her eyes. “I’m okay, Sabrina.”

“You’re not,” she shook her head. “But that really is okay, Nick.” She took his hand and led him to the bed. “Here.” She passed him the blue mug of tea one he sat down. “Hilda added a little something to help you sleep. Not too deeply, she said, in case Blackwood calls, but it will take the edge off. There is some shortbread too.”

Nick dutifully sipped his tea. It would be good to fall into a deep, dreamless sleep. He didn’t touch the shortbread.

Neither of them spoke as they drank down their tea. He appreciated that. Sabrina let him mourn and process the last several hours. That was what he needed right then. Not to be told things were okay or reassurance that he did the right thing. He just needed to sit there with her in a place where he felt safe.

When the tea was gone and Sabrina had ushered him under the covers and pitched them into darkness, he waited for her to come to him and settle on his chest the way she had the other nights they had spent together. She didn’t. She laid there on her side, eyes on him, giving him space.

He didn’t want space. Not anymore. He opened his arms and she came to him in an instant. Something in him settled when her head rested on his chest once more.

He loved her.

He had said as much to Amalia and he knew it to be the truest part of his existence now – he loved Sabrina Spellman.

His conscience once more piped up, begging him to tell Sabrina about the bet. Again, he dismissed it. He would tell her, but not tonight. Not when she was offering him the comfort he craved. He wanted to relish in this, in what it felt liked to be cared for.

He nearly told her he loved her. He assumed she had heard him tell Amalia as much, but in his mind, that didn’t count. It would mean something when he said it to her, face to face, when he sealed the words with a kiss and selfishly hoped she said it back, even though he didn’t expect her to. He wasn’t the kind of guy another loved. But he wanted to make sure the first time he said it was perfect.

“Sabrina?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m sure.” She kissed his jaw in the dark. “Rest, Nick. Ambrose is covering for you. You can sleep now. For a few hours, at least.”

He didn’t say anything further as Hilda’s tea pulled him under. His last thought as he drifted off into a deep peaceful sleep with Sabrina in his arms was that this couldn’t possibly last. It was too good.

Good things didn’t happen to him.

* * *

Sabrina was content to watch Nick slowly wake up. She remained propped up on her elbow as his eyes blinked open. He smiled a bit as she registered in his field of vision.

“Hey, Spellman.”

“Hey, Scratch,” she replied. “Sleep okay?”

“Whatever Hilda put in that tea did the trick. But I always seem to sleep better here.” That made Sabrina smile.

“I’m glad.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek. “How are you feeling?”

“Better,” he nodded. “I’ve mourned and now I move on.”

“It’s okay if you need more than a few hours to mourn, Nick.” Nick nodded, but as far as he was concerned, Amalia was dead and buried and that was that. Instead, with the morning light came the questions he had thought of while digging Amalia’s grave.

“Why were you in the woods?” he questioned. “I thought we had an agreement.”

“I needed some air?” Sabrina tried.

So it was Nicholas Scratch that was going to be the one to lecture her. That was a turn of events she hadn’t seen coming.

“Sabrina…”

She sighed.

“I went to talk to Harvey.” Nick closed his eyes as though in pain. “I just can’t believe he’s capable of killing another, least of all me,” Sabrina hurried on. “If I could just get him to talk to me…”

“He doesn’t want to talk to you, Sabrina,” Nick opened his eyes to look at her. “He will be eighteen in a week’s time. His senses are already creeping in. You said yourself he reacted badly when you told him you were a witch the first two times. I know you don’t want anything to happen to him, but he’s still a witch hunter – from a family of witch hunters. He is not the guy you dated last year, no matter how badly you want him to be.”

“I’m trying to save my family, Nick. And Harvey too, if I can manage it.”

“I know.” Nick worked to hold onto his patience and see her side of things. He had already promised her he would try to protect Harvey, but she was his priority. He would take out Harvey Kinkle if it meant saving Sabrina. “But I’m trying to save you. You can’t just take off after Harvey and not tell anyone.”

“I don’t like sitting around and waiting,” Sabrina told him. “I don’t like sitting around while one of my friends is likely cursed and the other is likely a witch hunter. I don’t like sitting around anticipating when Blackwood is going to attack my family while you, Ambrose, and Zelda get to dig further and further into Blackwood’s plans. I’m not like Hilda. I can’t wait at home to pick up the pieces. I need to be there when the pieces blow up!”

“Patience isn’t your strong suit, I get it.” Nick reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear. “I know it’s slow going, but we are doing the right things. When we know what we’re up against, you will have your place alongside us. Right now, you are doing your part by not tipping off Blackwood that you’re suspicious – and by not putting yourself in a position for the Kinkle clan to get to you easily. They likely already think your relationship with Kinkle is an in for them.”

“I know I shouldn’t have gone after him,” she admitted. “But I just don’t sit around, Nick. I don’t wait for trouble to find me. I try to stop it.” She played with the comforter. “Even if that usually causes trouble in the first place.” She raised her eyes to Nick’s. “I’m sorry. If I hadn’t gone after Harvey, Amalia wouldn’t have had a chance to attack and I wouldn’t have had to summon you and…”

“None of that,” Nick cut in. He put his hand on her cheek. “Amalia was already here. She was looking for you. If it hadn’t happened yesterday, it would have happened another day. She knew I was happy, that I have feelings for you. She couldn’t accept that.” His thumb stroked back and forth along her cheekbone. “She was willing to kill me, Sabrina. If she couldn’t have me, she wasn’t going to let you have me either.”

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” Sabrina shook her head. “About all of it.”

Nick settled back against the pillows and pulled Sabrina with him.

“Amalia is gone,” he said. “There is nothing we can do about that. But I’m begging you, Sabrina, absolutely begging you, to please, stay away from Harvey. Stay out of the woods. I know it’s hard for you, but your life literally depends on it.” He pressed a kiss to her hair and held her a little tighter. “I can’t handle it if something happens to you.”

Losing Sabrina was quickly becoming his greatest fear.

“I’ll keep my distance,” she promised, picking up on his desperation. “You’re not going to lose me, Nick. I’m not going anywhere.”

He could only draw her still closer. He said nothing further, focusing instead on being in the moment, Sabrina in his arms, his heart less heavy. They stayed there for a good while, until the unmistakable scent of sausage wafted into the room.

“That’s how Hilda lets us know breakfast is ready,” Sabrina told him. “She sends the smell into our bedrooms to entice us.”

“I should get back to the Academy…”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “You are going to have some breakfast with us first, Nick. When was the last time you ate?”

“Lunch yesterday,” Nick admitted.

“Come on.” Sabrina tossed the blankets back and got out of bed. Nick groaned at her loss. “You are having breakfast before you resume your life as a double agent.” Nick sat up and swung his legs over the bed, but he didn’t stand. Sabrina noticed his hesitancy then. “Nick?”

“It’s just… Hilda is going to fuss over me,” he admitted. “I don’t want pity, Sabrina. If I go down to breakfast, I know Hilda is going to try to ply me with food and ask how I am and if I need anything…”

Sabrina frowned and came to him. She stood between his legs and put her hands on his shoulders. His went to her waist on instinct.

“Why is it so hard to let people care for you, Nick?” she asked, going right to the heart of the matter. “Why is it hard for you to let people in?”

Nick didn’t answer right away. Instead, he averted his eyes and wrestled with his own internal push and pull around the idea of being vulnerable, of sharing his innermost struggles with her. Her soft hand brushed along his jaw and the touch pulled his eyes up to hers.

“I didn’t grow up like you,” he shared. “My parents were good parents, but they weren’t affectionate. I knew I was loved and cared for, but we were driven by purpose, not by emotion. And then I lost them and, well, you saw Amalia’s idea of caring for another. This, the way you are, the way Hilda is? Even the way Zelda cares in her efficient manner, how Ambrose is you’re your brother… That’s not something I have experienced before, Sabrina. I don’t know how to take it.”

“You don’t know how to experience being cared for?” Sabrina clarified.

Only then did Nick realize just how much of his innermost thoughts he had confessed. Sabrina did that to him. She drew things out of him without even trying. She did it by simply being her.

“Look at how I’ve lived my life, Sabrina,” he said. He felt entirely unworthy of her in that moment. “Does my past make me look like the kind of guy that is used to being cared for?”

Sabrina considered him. Her fingers trailed over the sharp cut of his jaw. She had always thought there was more to the cocky warlock and now she understood. She had grown up with Hilda, kind and warm, always ready with the right words, a cup of tea, and a baked good, Zelda, who despite her edges, was also affectionate in her own way, guiding her family with principles and infusing them with a confidence that they could do anything, and Ambrose, cheeky and obnoxious, but always right by her side, ready to help in any way he could. She had been brought up knowing what love was and infused with belief in herself. Nick had been the offspring of a powerful warlock and she was willing to bet his mother had been no lay witch either. He had been taught to have purpose, to not let his emotions drive him. When they died, he had been left to his own devices, left to figure out how the world worked and where he fit into it. All of this with her, her family, was brand new and, she realized, probably terrifying.

“You are cared for now,” she said in a way that dared him to argue. “Not only be me, but by my aunts and Ambrose…”

“Hilda hates me,” Nick interjected. “Zelda only tolerates me.”

“You have won Hilda over,” she assured him. “Zelda respects you, and you will receive no higher praise than that from her. As for Ambrose, well, he is probably just happy to have a warlock to hang around with after all this time in a house full of estrogen.”

That made the corner of Nick’s lips twitch just a bit.

“It’s a lot of me to accept,” he said. “I’m trying, Sabrina.” He covered her hand on his cheek with his own. “You have no idea how hard I’m trying.” He turned his head so he could kiss her palm. “I really should get back to the Academy though. Ambrose can only hold Blackwood off for so long.”

“Have something to eat first,” Sabrina encouraged him. “It will be better than anything you get at the Academy.” She smiled a bit. “And I know how you feel about Hilda’s cooking.”

Nick had to chuckle.

“Okay,” he agreed. “I’ll have breakfast before I go.” He got to his feet. Sabrina made to lead him towards the door, but he tugged her hand to stop her. He pulled her in and hugged her to him. She had no idea how much she meant to him, what he was willing to do for her. “Thank you.”

“For what?” she asked as she pulled away. He smiled ruefully.

“Everything.”

Sabrina lifted herself to her toes and kissed him.

Downstairs, he was relieved to find it was just Hilda. He thought he did a decent job of accepting both her condolences and the food she doled onto his plate. He was taken back when she hugged him as he prepared to leave and thanked him for coming to Sabrina’s aide. He saw Sabrina smirk as he awkwardly patted Hilda’s back in turn. But, he thought, she looked proud of him, too. When he appeared at the Academy with a baggie of sweets from Hilda for later, he was met almost right away by Ambrose.

“I was about to come get you,” he greeted. “Blackwood wants you. I can’t hold him off any longer.”

Nick sighed.

“Despite the circumstances, it was a nice reprieve.”

“You okay?” Ambrose asked with genuine concern.

“One foot in front of the other,” Nick replied. He stuffed the cookies into his jacket pocket and headed for Blackwood’s office. He knocked.

“Enter!” bellowed Blackwood.

Nick stepped into the office.

“You summoned me?”

Blackwood’s smirk was wicked. Nick braced himself.

“Ah, yes, Mr. Scratch,” he greeted. “I was considering sending a search party.”

“My apologies, Father Blackwood. I was at breakfast.” Not a lie. He was at breakfast – at Sabrina’s house. “How may I be of assistance?”

The smirk on Blackwood’s face only grew.

“Mr. Scratch,” he said as he tented his fingers in that predator-and-prey way of his, “I do think it is time for you to prove your loyalty.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always had a problem with how the show had Sabrina kill Amalia and then pretty much immediately go right into "why did you lie to me?" Sure, she comforted Nick, but she was also demanding to know why he lied and then they didn't address anything that happened after... So I finally got the chance to write that the way I wanted it to go. 
> 
> Kind of love having Nick explore love and all the conflicting feelings he has with it. It's such a depth to write. 
> 
> And we were all waiting for Sabrina to do a little something reckless, weren't we? 
> 
> Now... Blackwood's marching orders.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot happens below. Grab your favorite drink and settle in. ;)

Prudence checked the time. It was nearing the witching hour. Surely they would be done soon. She blew out a long breath and tapped her foot impatiently. Several more minutes ticked by before the double doors of her father’s office finally parted. She stood by as the members of the Judas Boys filed out. Nicholas and Ambrose brought up the rear, walking side by side, her suspicions ever heightened that the pair of them were up to something. Nicholas was the type to have a _friend_ and Ambrose’s sudden freedom was entirely suspicious. Still, they weren’t her top priority right then.

She went to the doorway.

“Father?”

“Prudence,” he replied in a bored tone. “May I help you?”

She bravely took a few steps into his office and made sure to stand proud and tall.

“I want to be a part of your Judas Boys.”

Blackwood scoffed. He didn’t bother to look at her.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Prudence.”

“I am being very serious,” she countered. “I am your daughter. You know as well as I do that aside from Nicholas Scratch and Ambrose Spellman, those you surround yourself with are lackluster at best. I will be an asset.”

“You are a girl,” Blackwood countered.

“I’m a woman,” Prudence bravely corrected. “And a capable witch. I want to be treated as such.”

“As a witch, it would serve you well to know your place,” Blackwood warned. Prudence didn’t back down.

“And where, father, is that?”

“Warlocks are rightly superior. It is the way the Dark Lord intended. Even the False God, with all of his faults, put man before woman. Witches are meant to be seen, Prudence, not heard. The sooner you realize that and fall in line, the happier you will be.”

“But I am Prudence Blackwood,” she insisted. “I am not some ordinary witch.”

“You are Prudence Night,” Blackwood corrected. “My daughter, perhaps, but not my heir.”

Something inside of Prudence shifted.

She stared at the man she shared DNA with. That was it, she realized. That was all he had gifted her – half of her gene pool. She had always suspected, deep in the recesses of her mind where she didn’t have to face it as a reality, that he was involved with her mother’s death. Now she felt that thought break free and take the center of attention with as much certainty as Sabrina Spellman had that Blackwood had killed her father. The man would have never laid claim to her had the truth not come out at the Spellman dinner table. He would have let her go through her life wondering about the truth, never willing to claim her as his own simply because she was a woman.

She decided right then and there that she was, to her core, Prudence Night.

And she would be her own woman.

“Very well,” she stated. “I will assume my place. As a woman.”

“Good,” Blackwood approved. He was too arrogant to realize Prudence had, in an instant, turned on him. “Now if you will excuse me, I would like to go check on my sons.”

“Give Lady Blackwood my best,” Prudence said coolly. The man wasn’t the least concerned with his wife who was barely holding on. It made her sick. She turned on her heel an exited the office.

Whatever Nicholas and Ambrose were up to, she wanted in. She knew it had something to do with her father and whatever was the purpose of his Judas Boys.

She wanted to know what Blackwood was up to.

And she wanted to stop him.

Before she, her sisters and any other witch within the vicinity were squashed under his heel.

* * *

Sabrina was in no hurry to get to herbology. She searched the swarm of students for Nick the way she always did but didn’t find herself surprised to not see him. It had been more than a day since he left the mortuary following Amalia’s death and she hadn’t seen him since. He had sent word by Ambrose that he was okay, but other than that, nothing.

She didn’t like it.

She wasn’t the kind of girl that needed her boyfriend to be in constant contact, but given that Nick was risking his life, a glimpse of him would go a long way in assuring her he was, in fact, alive and breathing.

A hand wrapped around her arm. She gasped as she was pulled to the side of hall.

“Ambrose!” she chided when she realized it was him. “What the Heaven?”

“Do you know how to do a banishing spell?” he asked urgently.

“A banishing spell? Why?”

“Yes or no?”

“Yes. Mostly.”

“Mostly?” Ambrose repeated. “Oh no. Mostly is not a good enough answer.”

“I can do a banishing spell,” Sabrina nodded. “But I have never banished more than a lesser demon…”

“Well, you have about a half hour to get really good at it,” Ambrose informed her. Sabrina frowned.

“Wait, what? Why?”

Ambrose spotted two of Blackwood’s Judas Boys at the end of the hallway.

“Just do it.”

He was gone.

Sabrina searched the hall for him – or Nick – but Ambrose was gone and Nick hadn’t suddenly appeared. Unease settled over her. Something was wrong. She considered going to Zelda, but her feet took her to herbology.

She had no idea what her professor said as her mind raced. She tried to recall the banishing spell, but she was distracted by why she needed to know it in the first place. What was going on? What was Ambrose warning her about?

Where was Nick?

They split into pairs. She dutifully went with Elsbeth but relied on Elsbeth to do the work as she lost herself ever deeper in her thoughts.

Time ticked by. Elsbeth prompted her a few times, trying to bring her back to the present. A few minutes before class was over, Elsbeth elbowed her again.

“What’s Nick doing here?” she asked.

“Nick?” Sabrina turned around.

Nick stood in the shadows of the greenhouse, dressed in his Judas Boys uniform, dark eyes on her, his hands cupped before him as he uttered a spell she couldn’t hear from across the room. She noted the symbols drawn around him. She stepped towards him.

“Nick? What are you doing?”

Screams erupted. She whirled around to find herself face-to-face with the most horrid demon she had ever seen. He roared an awful sound and his beaked skull for a face settled on her.

“Sabrina… Spellman…”

She took several steps back, her heartrate picking up.

She knew this demon. It was Satanachia, commander-in-chief of Satan’s army and one of the most powerful and feared demons there was. He was especially vile towards women, subjugating them to his will and making them do horrible things.

She understood then.

Nick had summoned Satanachia.

Likely for Blackwood.

Ambrose had warned her.

She had to fight back.

While her classmates fled the room, professor included, she stood her ground.

“What do you want, Satanachia?” she demanded. “Why are you here?”

“I want you,” the demon said in a voice that made her blood run cold. “You, my child, are perfect and innocent. I shall have some fun with you.”

She felt his power caress her mind. Sheer will helped her resist him as she took several more steps back. Behind her, Nick continued his spell.

“You won’t have me,” she informed Satanachia. “I won’t allow it!”

She cast a protection spell around herself. Satanachia laughed a wicked laugh.

“Do you believe your meager magic, perhaps more powerful than most, but meager by comparison to mine, is any match for me?”

With a slash of his arm through the air, she was on the ground. Her cheek stung from the contact. She scrambled to her feet. She had to keep her wits about her.

She began to chant, doing her best to recall the banishing spell, to summon all the power she had within her body. She fought against Satanachia’s powerful mind bending as she worked. The first try failed. Satanachia laughed and continued his attempt at breaking ito her mind. She tried again. This time, she managed a little smoke.

“Oh, Sabrina, give up,” he taunted. “It has been so long – a full day – since I had a virgin.”

She was growing tired.

Still, she stayed on her feet, even as Satanachia began to reel her in as though she were a fish on a line. Her heels dug into the ground as he lured her to him, her entire body determined not to give in. She chanted louder, harder. She somehow still had enough brain space to know Nick was still there, still controlling the demon.

“You will not have me!” she bellowed. “Not like this!”

She thrusts her hands out.

White hot fire erupted around her.

Satanachia let out another roar, but this one was full of pain. She took advantage of the moment to try the banishing spell one more time, this time fueled by and rage.

“How dare you try to take a woman against her will!”

She slammed her fist into her palm and twisted.

Satanachia disappeared with a final roar. Sabrina collapsed to the ground, exhausted and breathing hard.

“Sabrina!”

Zelda sprinted into the greenhouse and dropped to her knees. Others followed, both professors to help and students curious as to what was happening. Zelda grabbed Sabrina by the shoulders and righted her so she could see her better.

“My Satan!” she cried. “Are you okay? What happened? The students said Satanachia was here…”

“He was,” Sabrina breathed. “Nick conjured him. Satanachia was going to claim me, do Heaven knows what to me.” She looked over her shoulder in search of the warlock.

Nick was gone.

* * *

“There you go, dear,” Hilda placed a cup of lavender tea in front of Sabrina. “That should help.”

“What’s in it?” Sabrina questioned suspiciously.

“Nothing,” Hilda promised. “I know you will want and even need your wits about you, so I didn’t doctor it. The lavender alone will calm you. We will save the tampering for your evening tea.” Sabrina took a cautious sip as Hilda settled beside her. “Ambrose? Let’s hear it.”

“Blackwood challenged Nick’s loyalty,” Ambrose said right away. “He knew Nick was capable of conjuring such a demon as Satanachia. He also knew Nick was well aware of what the demon was capable of doing to Sabrina. He wanted Nick to prove he is a good, loyal Judas Boy. Nick risked his neck to tell me what Blackwood planned so I could warn you, Sabrina. I didn’t have much time. Thank Satan you were able to banish the beast.”

“Ambrose warned me as well,” Zelda supplied. She had escorted Sabrina home once things settled at the Academy. “I had my own part to play.” She had demanded Nicholas Scratch be thrown into the witch’s cell for such blatantly dangerous spell work and ripped into Blackwood when he refused such ‘extreme’ measures. When they were back in the safety of the mortuary, she dropped her charade. “I will return to the Academy shortly and do what I can to smooth things over for Nicholas without being too obvious to Blackwood. He’s not too popular with the student body now, given that he seemingly attacked his girlfriend out of nowhere.”

“Doubt that bothers him,” Ambrose quipped. “He’s not exactly friendly with anyone else at the Academy, is he?”

The front door opened and slammed shut. Rapid footsteps sounded. Sabrina looked to the door, expecting Nick.

Prudence appeared.

“Whatever the Heaven you lot are up to, I want in,” she stated without precedence. “I know you have it out for my father. I want to bring the bastard down.”

The Spellmans stared.

“I’m sorry, what?” Ambrose asked.

“I see it,” she continued. “What you all have been saying all along. He has plans – wicked plans – and they don’t involve witches. Or they do, so long as they are at his feet. He may be my father by blood, but that is where the relationship ends.” Still, the room stared at her. She huffed. “I will eat Hilda’s truth cake to prove I’m truthful if that’s what it takes to get you to believe I’m here to join you. I know you all – and Nicholas – are plotting against him. I want to be a part of it. I am damned tired of being regulated to the sidelines.”

Sabrina’s lips twitched into a smile.

“Good to see you finally coming around, Prudence.”

Prudence merely glared at her.

“One thing at a time,” Zelda said diplomatically. This was a twist she didn’t see coming. “Prudence? Why don’t you tell us what, exactly, has you so up in arms?”

“I went to him last night and asked to be a part of his Judas Boys. He denied me. He said a witch is to know her place. I reminded him I am Prudence Blackwood, his daughter and a powerful witch. He informed me I am Prudence Night and like all witches, I’m to be seen, not heard. And so, I decided I will, in fact, be Prudence Night. But I will be heard. To Heaven with him.”

“You are willing to go against your father?” Zelda clarified. She wanted to believe the witch. She saw Prudence’s potential. But she also couldn’t ignore the fact that herself, Ambrose, and Nicholas were all essentially double agents. Sabrina and Hilda too, to a point. Prudence could be doing the exact same thing for the enemy.

“My father had Nicholas conjure Satanachia,” she said, eyes darting to Sabrina. “He is treating Lady Blackwood like she is no more than an incubator. Lest we not forget his constant suppression of talented witches.” She unbiddenly glanced at Sabrina. “Blackwood does horrible things to women. Disgusting things. He is appalling. He needs to be stopped.”

Zelda opened her mouth to reply, but the sound of feet thundering down the stairs made its way to the living room. Sabrina got to her feet. She was certain it would be Nick this time.

Moments later, he erupted into the room, breathless and wild.

“Sabrina!” He crushed her to him, his arms vice-like as he held her. She could feel his heart racing through his chest. “Are you okay?” he asked into her hair. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“I’m fine.” She tried to pull away enough to look at him, but he held her so tightly she couldn’t. “I’m okay, Nick.”

“I had to do it,” he continued. “I did everything I could to protect you…”

“I know,” she soothed. “I know, Nick.” Again, she tried to pull away. This time, she was able to reach up and put her hand on his jaw. She met his eyes and only saw fear and worry in them. “I’m okay,” she said again. “You did what was needed. We all did.”

“I didn’t want to do it, Sabrina,” Nick shook his head. “But Blackwood…”

She silenced him by pressing a short, sweet kiss to his lips.

“It’s okay,” she said one more time. “I’m okay.” She considered him. “Are you?” It took Nick a moment to nod. Sabrina wasn’t convinced. She thought of their conversation in her room the previous morning and knew in her gut Satanachia had only set Nick back in his efforts to believe he was worthy of love.

“More tea, I think,” Hilda decided. “For both Nicholas and Prudence.” Nick noticed Prudence then. He let go of Sabrina but kept an arm around her waist and pull her into his side.

“Pru? What are you doing here?”

“Same as you, I suppose,” Prudence countered. “I’m here to end my father.” Nick was skeptical.

“You have been singing his praises and defending him at least since I have been here, probably longer. Why the change of heart? And why should we believe it?”

“Valid questions,” Ambrose shrugged. Prudence sighed.

“As I have told the Spellmans, I have recently seen the error of my father’s ways and his desire to suppress witches. I want no part of it.”

“I believe her,” Sabrina piped up, eyes on Prudence. Prudence’s eyes widened at the show of support from the half witch. “I have always believed you to be better than a Blackwood offspring should be. I didn’t know your mother, but I imagine you are a lot more like her than that man.”

Prudence looked uncomfortable with Sabrina’s praise.

“Thank you,” she said in a way that made it clear she wasn’t used to expressing gratitude.

“Nicholas, do you have anything to report out?” Zelda questioned. Nick glanced at Prudence. He decided if Sabrina trusted her, he would too.

“I was left alone in Blackwood’s office after I summoned Satanachia,” he said. “I didn’t have a lot of time – Blackwood didn’t spend much time trying to calm the chaos – and I’m sure there are a number of protections in place, but I was able to poke around a bit.” Sabrina felt his grip around her waist tighten. “Our assumptions are right – he is planning to start his own church – the Church of Judas.”

“What?” Prudence stated. “Leave the Church of Night?”

“Denounce it,” Nick corrected. “Denounce it all, Satan included. I found a draft of his manifesto in a drawer. I wasn’t able to read more than a few lines and I didn’t dare try to take it, but it was all there. Once the twins are born, he plans to announce the new order. Blackwood will be the deity. The twins will be his prodigal sons – a bit like the False God has Jesus and the Holy Ghost.”

“Judas betrayed the False God,” Sabrina recalled. “And Blackwood plans to betray Satan.”

“The Dark Lord won’t allow it,” Prudence shook her head. “He is selfish. He wouldn’t stand for losing a coven of followers. He would strip us of our powers.”

“I imagine Blackwood has a plan for that,” Nick said. “I think it has to do with the twins.”

“Sacrifice,” Ambrose said slowly. “He would sacrifice at least one of them, if not both. You said it yourself, Nicholas. Jesus and the Holy Ghost. Jesus died. The Holy Spirit is his spirit.”

“Blackwood is vile, but he wouldn’t kill his own children,” Prudence said. “Not innocent babies… Especially males…”

“He was going to allow you to be eaten alive,” Sabrina reminded her.

“Think of how he already treats women,” Zelda added. “If he makes himself the god we worship, we will be at his feet for certain. As for murdering a defenseless child? He would absolutely proceed with it as a means to an end.”

“I assume he wants the Spellmans dead because he knows we will stand in his way,” Ambrose guessed.

“He has been planning this for a long time,” Nick nodded. “Years.”

“Maybe he did have my parents killed,” Sabrina said, eyes on Zelda. Zelda didn’t reply, but she pursed her lips and looked contemplative.

“You were right about why he signaled Sabrina out as well,” Nick revealed. “He told me as much when he gave me my assignment. He has been sending all of these creatures after her in hopes that he could catch her off guard. I would guess the witch hunters came into play sometime around the sea demon or bees. Ambrose’s freedom put a bit of a kink in his plans – he thought of you as a sitting duck here at home, Ambrose – but I’m sure he has pivoted to find a way to off you, too. He probably sees it as a benefit that you are now in his inner circle.”

“Ambrose…,” Sabrina started.

“I will be careful,” he finished for her. “I didn’t finally get off of house arrest for a manic warlock to do me in.”

“I have absolutely no idea what you all are talking about,” Prudence broke in. “Witch hunters?”

“I’ll explain it all,” Ambrose promised. Hilda returned with more tea. She all but forced a cup into Nick’s hand.

“I don’t see why can’t just waltz into his office and lob off his head,” she said as she gave Prudence a cup of tea. She set to work re-filling everyone else’s cups. “Quick way to end it all if you ask me.”

“I considered it when he made his request of me last night,” Nick admitted.

“Good man,” Hilda nodded her approval.

“But if Nicholas would have acted upon those desires, he would have been charged with murdering a high priest,” Ambrose said. Nick nodded his agreement. “We have to be able to prove Blackwood’s plot, without a shred of doubt, before we advance it.”

“And how do we do that?” Sabrina wondered.

“We’re still working that part out,” Nick said begrudgingly.

They mulled around the living room for a bit longer. Ambrose and Prudence eventually parted to Ambrose’s attic under the guise of Ambrose filling Prudence in. Sabrina took Nick by the hand and led him up to her room a few minutes later. As soon as the door closed behind them, Nick pulled her back into his arms.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.

“Nick, I’m fine,” Sabrina said gently but firmly. “I knew you were doing what you had to do for Blackwood. You wouldn’t hurt me.”

“I would never hurt you.” That damned bet roared back to the forefront of his mind. He sighed and led her to sit on her bed. Her room had rapidly become a sanctuary of sorts for him, a place where he felt safe, where he could be with Sabrina and tentatively wade through these new feelings he was experiencing. He held her hand tightly in his. “It was awful, Sabrina. When Blackwood told me what he wanted me to do, I felt sick.”

“You did what you had to do, Nick,” Sabrina tried. She sensed his guilt. She wanted to take it away from him.

“I went straight to Ambrose,” he told her. “It was a risk, but it was the only way I knew to get word to you. I did everything I could not to let Satanachia reach his full power while still satisfying Blackwood’s request.” He used his free hand to cup her cheek. “It felt impossible to stand by and let you fight him on your own. But I swear, Sabrina, if I thought you were in danger of failing, I would have abandoned all pretense and did whatever I had to do to save you.” He smiled a bit. “But you handled Satanachia all on your own. Do you know how hot that is?”

Sabrina laughed out right.

“Only you would think banishing a demon was hot, Scratch.”

Nick laid back on the bed, bringing Sabrina with him.

“I like my witches rebellious and powerful,” he quipped. “And apparently with white blonde hair and ruby red lips.” He proved his point by kissing her soundly. When he pulled away, they got comfortable, both content to stay where they were for the foreseeable future. “Do you think we can trust Prudence?”

“I do,” Sabrina nodded. “I have known her for a long time, Nick. She always suspected Blackwood was her father. When he admitted it, she finally saw her chance to have the father she always wanted. Except it hasn’t been the relationship she dreamed of. Prudence acts tough, but under all of that bravado, she is trying to find her place, just like the rest of us. When Blackwood denied her today, that snapped the last bit of loyalty she had, the last bit of hope that Blackwood would claim her as his. She is with us now.”

“I hope you’re right,” Nick sighed. He had a hard time trusting anyone. He knew Prudence, but not in the familiar day-to-day way Sabrina did. He had done enough underhanded things himself to recognize the trait in others and Prudence had it in spades. He did trust Sabrina, however. “If you trust her, I will try to.”

Sabrina propped herself up on her elbow.

“She is on her side,” she said again. “I’m certain of that.” She brushed a curl off his forehead. “What about you? I asked you downstairs, but now that it’s just us – are you okay? The truth this time, Scratch.”

“I didn’t like what Blackwood asked me to do,” he admitted. “The idea of hurting you, or having to prove myself loyal to that man, even if it was to keep my true intentions hidden… I hated every moment of it, Sabrina. I couldn’t get away from him fast enough. I wanted to come right back here, but I knew he would be watching me and the second I went to you, he would get suspicious. So I had to stay away and hope like Heaven that Ambrose would get to you before I had to summon that damned thing.”

“How much trouble are you in?” Sabrina asked. “Surely you can’t conjure a demon like that in plain sight and be allowed to go unscathed?”

“Blackwood dismissed it as ‘a boy experimenting with his Satan-given powers,’ but I think I’m a bit of a pariah now,” he revealed. “No one wants to have lunch with the boy who conjured Satanachia to attack his girlfriend.”

Sabrina’s heart cracked at the way he tried to hide how affected he was by the idea of being an outcast. She ran her hand through his curls. He closed his eyes at the touch.

“I still want to have lunch with you,” she offered.

“Maybe dinner, too?” Nick proposed.

“I’ll even join you for breakfast.”

That made Nick chuckle. He worried about overstaying his welcome at the Spellman mortuary, but as long as Sabrina wanted him there, he would keep showing up. Looking up at her, her eyes shining, her hand now resting on his chest, he couldn’t take it anymore. He covered her hand with his and braced himself.

“Sabrina, there is something I need to tell you.”

Sabrina fought back the smile on her lips. This was it. He was going to tell her he loved her. She was sure of it. She would say it back. He needed to say it first, given his struggles with love and acceptance of that love, but she was eager to let him know she felt the same way.

“I’m listening,” she encouraged him. Nick took a deep breath.

“Sabrina, I…”

“Sabrina!” Hilda’s voice echoed through the house. Nick huffed out a sigh. Of course he was interrupted again. “Roz and Theo are here to see you, love!”

Sabrina looked at Nick.

“Roz and Theo?”

“Think Harvey told them?” Nick asked.

“He must have. They think I’m at school…”

Together, they left Sabrina’s bedroom and returned down the stairs. Theo and Roz stood in the entry with Hilda and Zelda. Both looked nervous. Theo fidgeted, rocking his weight from side to side while Roz just looked at her with an expression that was somehow both questioning and hurt.

“Roz, Theo, what are you two doing here?” Sabrina worked hard to sound like herself, just in case they didn’t actually know anything. She paused a few steps from the bottom, Nick at her side.

“I thought you were at school,” Roz replied.

“Harvey said some things…,” Theo said at same time. Sabrina sighed. They knew – or at least knew something.

“I suppose you have some explaining to do,” Zelda stated. Sabrina nodded. She had her aunt’s permission to tell the truth. Nerves flooded her, swift and sudden. She was about to admit to years of lying and reveal the magical world wasn’t just something in the movies. All she could hope for was that her friends would still be her friends in the end.

“Theo, Roz, we should go to the parlor,” she said. “I have a lot to tell you.”

She stepped down one stair, but Theo and Roz remained rooted to their spot. Nick made to follow but the coin in his pocket burned. Of course. First Theo and Roz interrupted his confession, then Blackwood interrupted his opportunity to be by Sabrina’s side as she confessed her double life to her friends. He stepped down and caught her hand.

“I have to go,” he said into her ear. “Will you be okay?”

“Blackwood?” she clarified.

“Blackwood,” he confirmed. Ambrose appeared from the basement. He raised his eyebrow at finding Theo and Roz in the entry way, but looked to Nick. “You too?” Nick asked.

“Me too,” Ambrose confirmed. “Shall we?”

“We have to,” Nick replied. Roz and Theo looked even more confused. Nick leaned in to kiss Sabrina quickly. “I’ll be back later.”

“Be careful,” she said with a hint of desperation. After everything Nick had been forced to do earlier, she put nothing past Blackwood.

“Always,” he promised.

He left through the front door with Ambrose with a polite tilt of his head to Roz and Theo. Sabrina joined them in the entry.

“Parlor?” she said again.

“I think some hot chocolate and cookies are in order,” Hilda decided. She shuffled away. Zelda appraised the group of teenagers.

“I’ll be in the study if I’m needed,” Zelda announced. She left them, a sign she trusted Sabrina to share their secret without her.

“Come on,” Sabrina prompted. She led them to the parlor. She took a seat in an armchair. Roz and Theo sat side-by-side on the couch. They looked stiff, formal. “What did Harvey say?” she asked in an effort to figure out what they knew.

“He said you’re a witch,” Theo made a disbelieving face. “That your aunts are witches. But… You can’t be a witch. Witches are just in movies and books and stuff…”

“Is it true?” Roz asked. Her voice shook. “It’s just… I’ve seen…”

“Of course it’s not true,” Theo spoke up. “It can’t be…”

Sabrina didn’t reply right away. She used her hand to make a magazine on the coffee table float into the air. Theo and Roz stared. She dropped her hand and the magazine crashed back to the table. Theo and Roz looked dumbstruck.

“I’m a witch,” she told them. She didn’t bother with pretenses but went straight to the point. “So are my aunts. Ambrose and Nick are warlocks. I haven’t been away at boarding school. I have been going to a school here in Greendale for witches and warlocks. As crazy as whatever Harvey told you might seem, it is all true. I’m a witch.”

Stunned silence followed.

Hilda returned with hot chocolate and cookies. She and Sabrina traded a knowing look.

“I’ll just leave this here then.” She placed the tray on the coffee table and squeezed Sabrina’s shoulder as she passed on her way out.

“I know this is a lot,” Sabrina continued. “What questions do you have? It’s probably the best way to do this – me, answering your questions. Ask me anything. Anything at all.”

“How long?” Theo asked right away. “How long have you been a – witch?”

“My whole life,” Sabrina shrugged. “But I only came into my full powers when I turned sixteen.” She didn’t bother with explaining her Dark Baptism. That would be too much for them at the moment. “My father was a warlock, but my mom was a mortal. I’m half mortal, half witch. But the Spellman family’s magic goes back centuries.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Theo continued. Sabrina noted it was just Theo asking questions. She glanced at Roz who appeared deep in thought.

“Our kind are generally persecuted by mortals,” Sabrina said. “We have been made out to be evil, to be dangerous. Honestly, some of us are.” She thought of Blackwood. “But the majority of us – my family, Nick – aren’t like that at all. We’re just – people. People with magical powers.”

“So Nick – he’s a warlock,” Theo clarified. Sabrina nodded. “And you met him through that Prudence girl?”

“Nick and I met at school,” Sabrina clarified. “He really did just move here – you met him shortly after I did – and he is, in fact, a warlock.” She had to smile just a bit as she prepared to brag about him. “He is an incredibly powerful warlock. More so than most. He is smart and a gifted conjurer and binder. Ambrose, too, is more powerful than the average warlock. He specializes more in rituals and spellcasting.”

“And your aunts?” Theo wondered. “What do they specialize in?”

“For the record, Prudence? Also a witch. That whole group of people that came over with her on our last movie night were all witches and warlocks from the Academy.”

“All of them?” Theo asked in surprise.

“All of them,” Sabrina nodded. Her lips fought against a smile at Theo’s curiosity. “As for my aunts, Hilda is a healer. She is also a clever alchemist. She knows every potion under the sun. She can grow anything, heal anything. She knows a lot about nature, about how to use it while honoring it. Zelda is fierce. She too is at her best when performing rituals or spellcasting. She knows a lot about ancient magic, how to access it, use it. You want her on your side.”

“What about you?” It was still Theo asking all the questions. “What are you good at?”

That question threw Sabrina. What _was_ she good at? Even the Weird Sisters seemed to have a certain area of magic they excelled in. She felt like she knew just enough about everything and not enough about it at the same time.

“I’m still figuring it out,” she admitted. “I banished a pretty powerful demon earlier today though.”

“I saw that,” Roz spoke for the first time. “You were in a greenhouse.”

“Wait, what?” Theo turned to Roz, but Roz’s eyes were on Sabrina. “You saw Sabrina banish a demon?”

“But Nick was directing it,” Roz continued, ignoring Theo. “He attacked you.”

“Nick conjured the demon,” Sabrina confirmed. “But it’s not what you’re thinking, Roz. He had to do it. I knew it was coming – at least I knew something was coming. Him and Ambrose are wrapped up in something right now.”

“Harvey also said…”

“Can we stay on the part where Roz saw you fighting a demon?” Theo interrupted. “How, exactly, did you see that? I have been with you since homeroom this morning.”

“Roz?” Sabrina prompted. She didn’t want to share Roz’s visions if Roz wasn’t ready for Theo to know.

“I’m losing my eyesight,” Roz told Theo. Theo nodded. He knew this. “But I’m seeing things too. Having visions. At first it didn’t make sense. Just shadows and shapes. But they are becoming more and more clear. I saw Sabrina and Nick in a cave. I also saw Harvey with his dad and grandfather. Harvey looked upset. And I saw Sabrina with the demon.”

“Are you – psychic?” Theo asked carefully. Roz shrugged a shoulder.

“I talked to my Gran. She lost her sight too. I told her about all of the doctors I have been going to.” She looked at Sabrina. “She said it’s a curse. Called the cunning.”

Sabrina was left stunned into silence.

It was her worst fear confirmed.

“A curse?” Theo repeated. He shook his head. “Nothing makes sense. Sabrina is a witch, Roz is having visions, Harvey said something about being a witch hunter…”

That snapped Sabrina back to reality.

“Harvey mentioned being a witch hunter?” she wanted to know.

“As wild as you being a witch is, I think that might be the most astounding part of it all,” Roz admitted. “Harvey said his family are witch hunters and that they are supposed to kill your family.”

“It’s true,” Sabrina sighed. “Father Blackwood – the high priest of my coven – hired them to do it.” She didn’t dare mention Ambrose and Nick’s involvement. She didn’t think Roz or Theo would purposefully tell Harvey something his family could use against hers, but she didn’t want to take the risk. “But we’re not going to let that happen. We’re not going to let Harvey go down that route either. Harvey isn’t a killer. We know that.”

“He was so on edge,” Roz told her. “I have never seen him like that before. He said he would come into his full powers when he turns eighteen in a few days, but that he was already feeling this uncontrolled rage, especially towards Nick.”

“He and Nick don’t like each other anyway,” Sabrina said. “Ex-boyfriend, new boyfriend. But I believe in Harvey. I don’t think he wants to hurt me or my family.” She took a breath. “Nick promised me he would work to protect him.”

“There’s just… So much…” Theo shook his head.

“It’s a lot to digest,” Sabrina nodded. “I’m so sorry Roz, Theo. I have lied to you for years…”

“Why?” Roz wanted to know. “We are your best friends, ‘Brina. If you can’t talk to us, who can you talk to?”

“No one,” Sabrina admitted. “Mortals aren’t supposed to know about us. I have been straddling two worlds my entire life and it is exhausting. I couldn’t be myself with you all, but those at the Academy look down on me because I’m half mortal or else because of my father’s views which were progressive, and they don’t agree with them. It has been really hard, lying to you all, especially this last year or so when I went off to the Academy. I have missed you, so much.”

“You could have told us,” Roz said. “I mean, it’s a lot to take in, but we love you. If you’re a witch then that’s just who you are.”

“But if Harvey is a witch hunter…” Theo worried.

“I don’t believe Harvey is capable of hurting me,” Sabrina said. “Witch hunter or not, he’s not a bad person. He wouldn’t do that to me.”

“He said you killed Tommy,” Roz hedged. Sabrina sighed. Harvey really had told them everything.

“I brought Tommy back to life,” she corrected. “But there were things I didn’t understand about life and death and the balance of nature. Things went horribly wrong. Tommy was essentially a zombie when Harvey shot him.”

“Wow.” Theo sat back against the couch.

“Harvey has every reason to be upset with me,” Sabrina continued. “That is something he and I will have to work through. But the whole witch hunter thing is the most pressing problem at the moment.” She looked to Roz. “We are also going to find a way to break your curse.”

“Sabrina…” Roz started shaking her head.

“I won’t let you go blind because of my kind,” Sabrina said stubbornly.

“I’m not sure I want magic to cure me,” Roz said bluntly. “I love you, ‘Brina, but magic… My father is a priest…”

“I want to help,” Sabrina insisted. “I won’t if you don’t want me to, but I want to help, Roz.”

“I’ll think about it,” she managed.

“What do we do about Harvey?” Theo asked. “How do we convince him not to kill you?”

“I have tried to talk to him, but he doesn’t want to see me,” Sabrina shook her head. “He’s not a killer though. I know that. You guys know that. But his family, his grandfather in particular…” She shook her head. “Nick made it clear that he would do what he could to protect Harvey, but he wouldn’t make the same promise about his family. He couldn’t.”

A heavy silence fell over the three friends.

“We should go,” Roz finally said.

“No, you don’t have to,” Sabrina tried. “Aunt Hilda made us hot chocolate. We haven’t even touched it…”

“It’s cold now,” she countered.

“I can warm it up…”

“Sabrina, I think it’s best we go,” Roz said firmly. “This is a lot to take in. My best friend is a witch, my boyfriend is a witch hunter, I’m cursed… I need some time to think.”

“Okay,” Sabrina agreed in a small voice. She held back her tears. “I’ll walk you out.”

No one spoke until they reached the gate. Sabrina felt the heaviness hanging around them. She thought she might even be able to reach out and touch it.

“Roz… Theo…”

“It’s okay, Brina,” Theo said gently. “All of this is a lot to take in, but we still love you.” Sabrina smiled at him gratefully. She would have to tell him about the exorcism of his uncle, but she didn’t have that in her today. “And here I thought I was the cool one, what with having my aunt as a spirt guide ghost situation.”

That made Sabrina chuckle. Even Roz smiled.

“We will talk to you soon,” Roz said. “Just – let me process this.”

“Of course,” Sabrina nodded. She couldn’t help but feel a little wounded all the same. The pair started to walk away, but Roz turned back.

“Sabrina?”

“Roz?”

Roz hesitated for a moment, then gave a small nod of her head as though making up her mind.

“Do you think you can trust Nick?”

“I would trust Nick with my life,” Sabrina answered, meaning every word. In a way, she already had. “I know what that vision of him with the demon must have looked like to you, Roz, but he would never hurt me.” Roz looked skeptical but gave another nod of agreement.

“If you trust him, then I will too,” she decided, just as Nick had said about Prudence earlier.

Sabrina stayed outside until Roz and Theo had disappeared from sight. Her aunts were waiting for her inside.

“Well?” Zelda prompted.

“They know,” Sabrina said wearily.

“And?”

Sabrina shrugged.

“It could have gone better, but it certainly could have gone worse.”

“That’s something I suppose,” Hilda offered. Sabrina just shook her head. She suddenly felt exhausted.

“I’m going to go take a long bath and go to bed early,” she decided. “Being attacked by and then banishing a demon and now having to tell my friends I’m a witch… It has been a rough day.”

“Go,” Hilda approved. “We are here if you need to talk.”

Sabrina was surprised Zelda didn’t try to stop her. She expected more of a discussion, a lecture, something. She was grateful when it didn’t come.

Upstairs, she sunk into the hot bath. Her heart was heavy as she thought over all the things working against them at the moment. The Spellmans had had their backs against the wall before. When the Greendale Thirteen returned to town and when she initially refused to sign the Book of the Beast came to mind. But this was different. This felt bigger, more sinister.

Her eyes fell on her amulet. She had carefully placed it on the tray by her tub where she kept a candle and a book for her long soaks. The sight of it brought her a wave of comfort.

The odds felt enormous.

But there was a warlock out there who loved her. Even if he hadn’t said the words, she knew it. She believed it. She loved him too.

Somehow, they would all come out of this, she told herself. They would save Harvey, break Roz’s curse, stop whatever evil plans Blackwood had for the Spellmans and the Church of Night. Life would go back to normal, or whatever the new normal would be.

A new normal in which he would be free to make sure Nicholas Scratch never, not once, questioned if he was loved or worthy of such feelings ever again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prudence. I love her so much. 
> 
> Nick, doing the most to keep his identity under wraps and Sabrina safe. Sabrina, banishing demons. More interruptions, but at least Sabrina got to tell the truth about something? 
> 
> Next chapter - well... I can't say anything. It's one big spoiler if I do. 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one! I love your comments!


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We knew it was coming.

Sabrina felt the eyes on her.

It had been like that all day.

Her fellow classmates whispered about her as she passed, eyed her curiously. More than one of them had come up to her to ask if she was okay or else to damn Nicholas Scratch for what he did to her. Melvin had even offered to curse Nick. Sabrina let him know that wasn’t necessary – not that she thought Melvin was capable of cursing Nick in the first place.

She hadn’t seen Nick at all. Not even a glance. She had spied Ambrose a couple of times but had been thwarted in her attempts to get to him, either him or her pulled off in the opposite direction whenever she tried. School was done for the day, but she still lingered, hoping to see Nick. She was growing concerned, convinced Blackwood had done something to him. Her mind had spun up all sorts of scenarios, all of them caused by Blackwood finding out Nick had come to her the night before after summoning Satanachia. She decided if she didn’t hear from him by the time dinner passed, she would go in search of him.

“Ah, Cousin.” Ambrose appeared from a classroom. “How was your day?”

“Shut up,” Sabrina mumbled. Ambrose chuckled at her annoyance with not him, but everything else the day had held. He rather enjoyed poking the beast when she was in a mood. “Where is…”

“How does a trip to Dorian’s sound?” Ambrose cut her off. “I suppose it’s a bit early to drink for some, but why not? I think you deserve a glass of wine after the last couple of days. I could certainly use a tumbler of scotch.”

Sabrina’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“Aren’t I supposed to go straight home?” she questioned. “You and the aunts’ rules, not mine.”

“A pit stop with your cousin won’t hurt,” Ambrose shrugged. “Let’s go.”

He didn’t wait for her to agree. She didn’t protest – anything was better than going straight home for a change. Ambrose teleported them from the Academy to Dorian’s as soon as they were outside and led the way in. It was mostly empty. Her eyes fell on a figure at the bar.

“Nick!”

Nick slid off the bar stool with a grin that told her he had been expecting her all along.

“You’re welcome,” Ambrose announced. “Both of you.” He waved to Dorian as he walked away “Gray! Your best scotch, if you please.”

“Hey, Spellman,” Nick said, eyes only for her.

“Hi.” She closed her eyes in satisfaction as his arms wrapped around her. She hugged him hard and nuzzled her nose into the crook of his neck.

“Miss me?” he chuckled.

“I was worried about you,” she countered. “I spent the entire day looking for you and being told by our classmates how terrible you are for what you did to me yesterday. By the end of the day, I wanted to curse all of them, and I was convinced Blackwood had found out you came to the mortuary after conjuring the demon and did something terrible to you for betraying him.”

Nick sighed.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “For all of it, but especially for worrying you. I laid low today – I knew people weren’t happy with me and thought it best I stayed out of their way. Blackwood said there was a call from the staff for me to be expelled.”

“But you’re not, right?” Sabrina questioned.

“Well, no, but I haven’t exactly been doing even my independent study lately, have I?” he replied. “Just as well. The less people with an eye on me, the more easily I can observe Blackwood and find out what he’s up to.”

“I’m sorry,” Sabrina shook. “You shouldn’t be in this position…” She felt terrible for double life Nick was leading and now she realized she was taking him away from studying, something she knew he loved, on top of it. Nick silenced her by placing his hand on her cheek.

“I chose to be here,” he reminded her. “I’m choosing to stay here.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “And I got Ambrose to bring you here for a pseudo date, because I think it’s high time you and I had a chance to be together outside of your bedroom.” He grinned cheekily. “Not that I mind being in your room.”

Sabrina grinned.

“I’ll take a date with you anytime, Scratch.”

“Someone certainly has changed their tune over these last few weeks,” he teased. Sabrina playfully shoved him. He responded by pulling her into his side and kissing her temple. “Let’s have a drink, Spellman. Red wine?”

“I think I’ll have a bourbon, actually,” she informed him. Nick’s eyes looked sultry. She knew he was recalling the night he had convinced her to stay at Dorian’s, to taste his bourbon, to dance with him. They had nearly kissed on the dance floor before she fled.

She still regretted not kissing him that night.

“I like it,” he approved. He got their drinks and they found a spot in a corner away from prying eyes. A few more people from the Academy had trickled in and it would only get busier as the evening progressed. He knew they wouldn’t have long, but a stolen few minutes in a dark corner at Dorian’s was the best he could do on the date front right now. “Here’s to hoping we can manage a whole drink before Blackwood summons me.”

“What does Blackwood ask of you when he summons you?” Sabrina wondered. Nick had been largely tight lipped about his deeds and she wanted to know more.

“Depends,” he shrugged. “It started off as menial tasks. Baby furniture, fetching him dinner. In my case – and in Ambrose’s – it has rapidly escalated into things like rituals.” He paused. “Punishment.” Sabrina’s eyes widened. “I do everything I can to minimize the pain. So does Ambrose. But when he asks something of us, we can’t refuse. Trust me, I’ve seen what happens when a warlock does refuse.

“I hate this…”

“I know.” Nick’s hand closed over her knee. “We are close though, Sabrina. I feel it.”

“Are you safe?” she asked bluntly. “Is Ambrose? Blackwood took him into the fold far too easily…. You too, for that matter.”

“What we are doing is dangerous,” Nick stated. “There is no way around it. It would be dangerous if we weren’t trying to circumvent Blackwood, but we are, and that means the danger is escalated. But both Ambrose and I are smart, Sabrina. We are toeing a line, but we are toeing it well. As for Ambrose…” He trailed off and shrugged a shoulder. “Of course Blackwood brought him in quickly. Ambrose is a powerful warlock and he’s a Spellman. Blackwood is vain. He didn’t think too much of it – just that he had one more powerful disciple that happened to also be a part of the family he is trying to take down. Ambrose is a means to an end in his eyes. Which isn’t wrong, exactly, but it’s Blackwood’s end that’s coming, not Ambrose’s.”

“I would like to just off Blackwood,” Sabrina said. “End all of this.”

“And, once again, you would be on trial for murdering a high priest,” Nick reminded her. He moved closer. “How about we table the Blackwood talk? I spend far too much time talking about him and to him.” He removed the glass from her hand. “I would like to make out with my girlfriend in a public place.”

Sabrina pulled him in.

Too soon, they were pulling apart, both aware that the bar had picked up. They couldn’t stay much longer.

“Can we finish that later?” Sabrina requested.

“I wouldn’t be opposed.” He pecked her lips. “If I were a better guy, I would sleep in my own bed for a change.”

“But then I would be lonely,” Sabrina quipped. She certainly didn’t mind him sneaking into her bed all hours of the night. “Or, we could turn the tables and break a couple of rules… I could sleep in your bed…”

“Not until Blackwood is neutralized,” Nick shook his head. He was dying to have Sabrina in his bed. There was a certain sense of freedom that came with the idea of her aunts not being down the hall. But as long as Blackwood had her in his crosshairs, he wouldn’t risk it. “But as soon as this is over? Sleepover.”

Sabrina smiled.

“I’m looking forward to it.”

They finished off their drinks and begrudgingly, Nick suggested it was time to return to the mortuary. He hadn’t been summoned by Blackwood and had every intention of staying with her until he was – it didn’t hurt that he would get Hilda’s cooking for dinner if all went well – but they were already attracting attention.

“Well well well, aren’t you two cute?”

Nick groaned. Sabrina narrowed her eyes at Agatha.

“Looks like we’re leaving just in time,” she quipped.

“I’m surprised you’re still hanging around with this one,” Dorcas nodded towards Nick. “After that stunt he pulled yesterday, I would steer clear. Quite the temper, even for a warlock.”

“Best not speak on things you don’t understand,” Prudence warned as she joined her sisters.

“I’m sure you were hoping Satanachia would possess dear Sabrina here,” Agatha continued in spite of Prudence’s warning, her eyes on Nick. “Maybe then she would finally sleep with you.”

Nick’s hand went to Sabrina’s back.

“As Sabrina said, I think we chose a good time to leave.” He navigated her around the trio. He could tolerate Prudence. It was the other two that got under his skin.

“It’s cute, really,” Dorcas called after them. “You talked such a big game, Nicky, and yet here you are, letting her lead you around by the balls and getting nothing in return.”

Sabrina looked at Nick. He was glaring at Dorcas, his jaw locked and dangerous.

“What’s she talking about?” she asked.

“Dorcas, hush,” Prudence hissed.

“Sleep with him, Sabrina,” Dorcas prompted. “It would put him out of his misery for one, but if he manages to get past your iron clad chastity belt, I think he should still be allowed to claim his prize. That would be quite the accomplishment and should be rewarded as such, given how uptight you are.” She smirked devilishly. “And by prize, I don’t mean your virginity.”

“Nick?” Sabrina pressed, sensing she was missing out on something.

“We’re leaving,” Nick stated. He had no choice. It was time to be honest. But he wasn’t going to do this in front of the Weird Sisters. “Come on, Sabrina.” He caught her hand and tugged her forward. Sabrina followed with a questioning look at Dorcas who looked rather pleased with herself.

“Sabrina?” Prudence called.

“Leave it alone, Prudence,” Nick warned as Sabrina stopped to look back at her.

“He chose you, Sabrina,” she stated, undeterred by Nick’s warning. “Remember that.” She ushered Dorcas and Agatha away. Nick tugged Sabrina forward once more. Outside of Dorian’s, Sabrina whirled to face Nick.

“Start talking, Scratch,” she demanded. “What was Dorcas talking about? Claim your prize?”

“Let’s go to your place,” Nick tried. “We can talk there.”

“Right here will do,” Sabrina countered. She wanted to get to the bottom of whatever was going on. “What was she talking about, Nick? What did Prudence mean, you chose me?”

Nick took a deep breath. He felt like he was outside of his body, watching as he set fire to his life. He could only be honest and hope she could forgive him.

“That day I walked into choir class for the first time, you were singing,” he told her. “Everyone else stopped whatever they were doing to gawk at the new guy, but not you. You sang until Lady Blackwood told you to stop. My eyes found you and I fell hard, right then and there, before I ever got to know you.” He smiled a bit. “I had lunch with you that day, remember?”

“Why are you walking down memory lane?” Sabrina questioned. “Get to the point.”

“By the end of that conversation, I had to know you, Sabrina,” Nick continued. “I had to know the girl who sang like an angel, who met my wit quip for quip, who backtalked the High Priest without fear.” He smiled a bit more, but there was sadness around his eyes. “But you wouldn’t give me the time of day.”

“Nick, seriously,” Sabrina pressed, her irritation growing. Nick took both of her hands in his.

“That night at Dorian’s, when we danced?” Sabrina nodded impatiently. “It felt so good, having you in my arms, your body that close to mine. I thought I was finally going to get to kiss you, but you disappeared like Cinderella did when the clock struck midnight.” Sabrina raised an eyebrow. “I got a book of fairytales from Cee’s. Read them all.”

Normally, the confession would have made Sabrina smile. Not this time. Nick squeezed her hands tighter. This was it. This was where the fire department determined that the structure couldn’t be saved and let the flames overtake it.

“I went to the bar after you left that night. I was disappointed. I didn’t understand why at the time, but I know now it was because I was already developing feelings for you.”

“Get to the point, Nick,” Sabrina pressed.

“Prudence taunted me.” His hands held hers still tighter. “She said I couldn’t get you. I, of course, said I could. One thing led to another. We made a bet.” Nick looked her in the eyes because that was what she deserved from him, no matter how badly he wanted to be a coward in the moment. “That I could get you to sleep with me within the month.”

Sabrina pulled her hands away from him.

“You did what?” Her voice shook.

“I made a bet that I could get you into bed,” he said again. He blinked back moisture that tried to fall from his eyelids. “But I fell for you, Sabrina. I feel hard and I fell fast. I went to Prudence and ended the bet. I couldn’t do that to you.”

“I was a bet,” Sabrina said, not hearing anything else he said as she tried to digest it all. “You… Me… All of this… It’s a lie.”

“No,” Nick swore as he tried to grab for her hands. She batted him away. “No, Sabrina. Everything between is very very real. I swear to Satan…”

Sabrina shook her head. She didn’t want to hear it.

“I was a bet,” she repeated. “You just wanted to sleep with me to prove you could. I meant nothing to you. I mean nothing to you!”

“You mean everything to me,” Nick corrected. He reached for her hand again. She smacked him away again. “I didn’t want to hurt you, Sabrina…”

“But you did!” She couldn’t stop her tears as his betrayal caught up with her. She angrily wiped at them. “Roz asked me, just last night, if I thought I could trust you. I told her I would trust you with my life. I was so very wrong. I can’t trust you at all!”

“You can trust me, Sabrina,” Nick tried. “I ended the bet. I fell for you and I put an end to it because I knew it wasn’t right.” He managed to catch her hands this time, even as she tried to bat him away. “I love you, Sabrina…”

“No!” she cried out. She tried to pull away, but he held firm. “You don’t get to say that! Not now! Not after I learned all of this was nothing more than a complete and total lie!” Tears poured down her cheeks. “You used me, Nick.”

“Sabrina, please, I didn’t…”

She did the only thing she could.

She lashed him with magic.

Nick cried out as Sabrina stumbled backward several steps to put distance between them. His arm burned from her spell. His sleeve was singed, and he could feel the welp crying out angrily against his skin, but he didn’t care. The girl in front of him was the most important thing at the moment.

“I know you’re upset,” he tried. “I know that. I’m so sorry, Sabrina. I am so sorry…”

“Go to Heaven, Nicholas,” she spat. “I want nothing to do with you.”

She disappeared.

Nick felt his heart go with her.

He bent over, hand on his knees, and squeezed his eyes shut. He tried to focus, to slow his racing thoughts, control his breath. He had to pull himself together. He couldn’t fix things if he was falling apart. But he had never been in this situation before. He had hurt plenty of feelings, but never had he broken someone’s heart, least of all the heart of someone he loved. He had no idea what to do next, just that he had to do something, anything.

“Nicholas?”

Her voice made him straighten up. His eyes blazed when he met hers.

“The best thing for you to do right now would be to leave me the Heaven alone,” he warned.

“I’m sorry, Nicholas,” Prudence ignored his warning and took a couple of steps towards him.

“Prudence, leave,” he said again.

“You really love her.”

It wasn’t a question. She, a witch who had no idea what love was, could see it plainly. She made fun of Sabrina Spellman and her belief in things like love but standing before her was a warlock that was heartbroken. It wasn’t just Sabrina’s mortal half that made her feel such an emotion. It was an actual, viable feeling for their kind. Something they, too, could experience.

The pain Nicholas Scratch was in didn’t make it look very appealing, however.

“If you won’t leave, I will,” Nick stated.

Instead of teleporting away as Prudence expected him to do, he stomped past her and into the bar. She sighed and made up her mind to follow him. She didn’t know him all that well, all things considered, but she was certain he was on his way to self-destruction. She was also certain her sisters, likely Dorcas, would try to take advantage of the situation. She turned and followed him inside.

The least she could do was look out for him while he drank away his pain.

* * *

Her knocks were tentative.

She waited, not sure if she would be welcomed.

The door opened.

Ambrose crossed his arms over his chest and glared at her. She went right to her point.

“Nicholas needs you.”

Ambrose scoffed.

“Nicholas needs me?” he repeated. “The son of a bitch broke my cousin’s heart – and you played a substantial part in that, didn’t you? – and you think I’m going to go help him in his time of need? Try again, Prudence.”

“He called off the bet,” she tried. She didn’t quite understand why she was there, but she felt responsible for Nick’s unhappiness, Sabrina’s too. Doing the right thing was a new concept for her, but she was trying. “He didn’t want to make it in the first place. That doesn’t change the fact that he did, but he really does love Sabrina.” She made a face. “Heaven knows why.” She couldn’t resist the dig. She could only change so much in a day’s time. “He’s at Dorian’s and he’s a mess, Ambrose. I tried to get him to go back to the Academy, but he doesn’t exactly want me around. And you know how Dorian is – no limits. Nicholas keeps asking for refills and Dorian keeps giving them.”

“Nicholas’ drunken stupor and his hangover tomorrow are not my problem,” Ambrose remained steadfast.

“Ambrose, please.” It was as close to begging as she would get. “If Blackwood summons him right now, it won’t end well.”

Ambrose couldn’t ignore the note of desperation, faint but there, in Prudence’s tone. She wasn’t one to ask for help and she had a point. If Nicholas was truly in the state she said he was, he wouldn’t be able to function at the level he needed to if Blackwood were to call him into service.

“He’s at Dorian’s?” Prudence nodded. Ambrose sighed. “I suppose if he blows his cover, he blows mine and then all Heaven breaks loose.” He shook his head in annoyance. “Dammit. Fine. I’ll go.” He stepped out onto the porch and closed the door behind him. He stopped in front of Prudence. “Don’t think this means I have forgotten your part in this.”

He didn’t wait for her to reply. He made his way down the stairs and out of the yard before he disappeared. He reappeared in front of Dorians and found Nick at the bar, head hung low, hand wrapped around a full glass of bourbon.

“He’s in a right state,” Dorian greeted Ambrose. “Your cousin did a number on him.”

“He did a number on my cousin,” Ambrose corrected. “Make yourself scarce, Dorian. Your services aren’t needed.”

“Such hostility,” Dorian muttered as he walked away. Ambrose rolled his eyes and slid onto the stool next to Nick.

“Come to break my neck?” Nick asked, eyes never leaving his bourbon.

“I’ve considered it,” Ambrose replied. “Still considering it.” He surveyed Nick. He was worse for the wear, but he wasn’t entirely drunk either. It wasn’t what he expected. “The way Prudence talked, I expected you to be cork high and bottle deep.”

“I’ve considered it,” Nick countered with Ambrose’s words. “But I thought it best to keep my wits about me in case Blackwood summoned me.” Still, he raised his glass and took the smallest of sips. “How is she?”

“Devastated,” Ambrose answered. “What the Heaven, Nick? How could you…”

“I love her, Ambrose,” Nick cut him off. “I did something stupid. I know that. I called it off. I tried to tell her. I was going to tell her…” He trailed off as the panic in his chest rose. Every time he thought about Sabrina, he felt that same tightening in his chest. He breathed in, trying to control himself. Too much was at stake to spiral now.

He desperately wanted to spiral.

It would make things so much easier, at least for the moment.

“That’s the thing,” Ambrose said after a beat. “I actually believe you.”

Nick looked at Ambrose.

“You do?”

He was sure the Spellmans would ban him from their existence, that they would surround Sabrina like bears protecting their young. He was certain that was still the case. But, maybe, with Ambrose at least, there was an opening that would allow him the chance to at least talk to Sabrina, explain, grovel.

“I reckon you wouldn’t do the things you have done for her if you didn’t love her,” Ambrose mused. “Regardless of what some of your other motives may be.” A dark look passed over Ambrose. Nick let the comment go. “But you really messed up, Scratch. You’re going to need more than pretty words and easy charm to get yourself out of this one.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes,” Nick promised. “Starting with bringing Blackwood down and stopping the damned Kinkles.” If he couldn’t get Sabrina to talk to him right now, he could at least keep her safe.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Ambrose warned, picking up on the dangerous tilt to Nick’s tone. “I keep telling Sabrina – it’s slow, but we’re making progress. She’s enough of a wild card. I don’t need you going rogue too.”

“Don’t worry about me,” Nick stated. He slid off the stool and took out his wallet. He tossed down several bills to cover his few drinks plus a large tip. “I know what I’m doing.”

He left Ambrose without a backward glance.

He absolutely did not know what he was doing. He felt edgy, restless. He wanted to curse something, conjure something, maybe even set something on fire. He wanted to pour bourbon down his throat, maybe chase it with a few drugs he hadn’t touched since he got to Greendale. For the briefest of moments, he had thought about how good it would be to lock himself in one of Dorian’s private rooms with a couple of sex demons.

He didn’t do any of those things.

He didn’t even get drunk the way he wanted to.

He blamed Sabrina Spellman for that.

She had made him a better person and it was really messing with his coping skills.

“You’re a hard man to track down, Nicholas.”

Nick jumped in surprise.

“Once again, some warning, please?” he demanded of the man before him.

“This way is more fun for me.” Nick rolled his eyes. “It’s my understanding there has been progress?”

“Progress,” Nick confirmed. “Perhaps some setbacks, but progress overall.”

“Setbacks?” he questioned with a menacing eye.

“I’m handling it,” Nick said with annoyance.

“Seems as though you have enjoyed a bit of bourbon tonight.”

“Not as much as I’d like,” Nick countered. “Do you have a point to make, or are you just here out of boredom?”

“I seem to have caught you at a bad time.”

“Isn’t that generally the case?”

“No more setbacks,” the man warned. “You have a job to do.”

“You certainly won’t let me forget.”

“Stay on task, Nicholas.”

With that, he was gone.

Nick blew out a long breath and resumed walking. The only way his day could get worse was if Blackwood summoned him and if there was a Satan in Hell, he would be left alone for a change. He needed a damned break from it all.

When he reached the Academy, he stopped, thinking. He didn’t especially want to go in, to climb the stairs and tuck away in his bedroom for the first night in days. He made up his mind before he could talk himself out of it and prayed to Satan it was still an option.

“Lunacae Magicae.”

He appeared in Sabrina’s room with a sigh of relief. The portal into her room hadn’t been closed off. The room was dark and Sabrina was sound asleep, oblivious to his arrival. Salem sat up at the foot of bed and pierced him with a sharp look but didn’t move to alert Sabrina of his presence. He took it as a good sign that the familiar didn’t run him off.

He stood and took her in for several long moments. She was beautiful, especially in the faint moonlight. He loved her, more than he could put into words. It made his heart contract and his throat feel like it was closing up as he thought about just how much he loved her. He had wanted the first time he told her to be special, memorable. Instead, he had blurted it out in an effort not to lose her and had failed all the same.

Sabrina shuddered in her sleep and Nick’s heart broke all over again. He intuitively knew she had cried herself to sleep and her body was still recovering.

He wanted to stretch out beside her, wrap his arms around her. Part of him truly believed if he could just hold her, she would believe him, forgive him. The rest of him knew it wouldn’t be that easy, no matter how long he was willing to lay there next to her.

He couldn’t.

Not tonight.

But he didn’t want to sleep alone either.

He settled on her rocking chair. It wasn’t especially comfortable, but it was the best he could do. He crossed his arms over his chest and kicked his legs up on the matching ottoman. He would leave before she woke up, he decided. She would never need to know he was there.

It wasn’t much.

But he was there, near her if not with her.

It beat the heaven out of sleeping alone at the Academy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the bet is out there. I always intended to have Dorcas be the one who exposed it, but I waffled for a bit about wanting Nick to be the one. And I guess we kind of split the difference, didn't we? Dorcas put it out there, but she made sure Nick had to be the one to come clean. Let's spare a moment too to applaud Prudence, trying to help right wrongs in her own way. 
> 
> But here's the thing. Nick really loves Sabrina. And he will do anything for her... 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading - it really does mean the world to me! Let me know what you thought of this one!


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst ahead...

Sabrina stopped in her tracks.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded.

All eyes turned to her.

“Sabrina…”

“Don’t talk,” she snapped. “Get out. You are not welcomed here.”

“Sabrina!” Hilda chastised. “Where are your manners?”

Sabrina extended her finger to point at the offending party seated at her kitchen table.

“Do you know what she did, Aunt Hilda?” Sabrina demanded.

Prudence sat at the Spellman breakfast table like a deer in the headlights.

“Sabrina, perhaps the breakfast table isn’t the right place to express our emotions,” Ambrose tried. He was well aware of how this was going to go. “Let’s enjoy our baked oatmeal and fresh fruit and then we will go off to the Academy, have ourselves a chat on the way…”

“Oh hush Ambrose!” she snapped. “Turns out, Aunt Hilda, that you were right about Nicholas after all. Our entire relationship was a sham.”

Hilda frowned.

“What now?” she wondered.

“Sabrina,” Prudence tried, not sure what she was going to say, but certain she wanted to maintain the fragile balance of peace and acceptance she had established within the Spellman household – and with Ambrose. He had been a bit cool to her when he returned from Dorian’s to find her sitting at his desk, but he hadn’t turned her away. Of course, he hadn’t allowed anything physical either. “Let’s not…”

Of course, Sabrina ignored her.

“Nicholas and Prudence made a bet,” she told Hilda. “She,” her hand waved wildly at Prudence, “bet Nicholas he couldn’t get me to sleep within him within a month. My entire relationship was a lie, all so Nicholas could win a bet.”

Hilda looked confused.

“But… Nicholas seems so… Smitten…”

“He is,” Prudence spoke up. “He called things off, Sabrina, because he cares about you…”

“So it’s true then?” Hilda asked her, bewildered. “You made a bet about Sabrina?”

“It was dumb,” Prudence said quickly. “Nicky didn’t want to make it anyway and I should have listened…”

“Prudence,” Hilda sighed and shook her head in disappointment. Prudence dropped her gaze. She felt – shame. That was new. She had disappointed her father time and time again, simply because she was a female, but this was different. This – didn’t feel good. “How could you?”

“It was dumb,” she said again in the smallest voice she had ever used. She forced herself to raise her eyes to Sabrina. “Be mad at me, Sabrina, but Nicholas…”

“Can burn in Heaven,” Sabrina finished. “Auntie? I’m going to be skipping school today. Make up a story if someone comes looking for me.”

“Oh stop being so dramatic.” Zelda glided into the room as formidable as ever. “Having a disagreement with a boy is no reason to skip school.”

“It was more than a disagreement,” Sabrina informed her aunt. “And how did you know? You weren’t home last night. Which, where were you anyway?”

Zelda lit a cigarette as she sat down at the table.

“I was tending to Lady Blackwood. Those babies aren’t going to wait much longer.” She helped herself to the baked oatmeal. “As for Nicholas, I checked in on you when I got home a few hours ago. The fact that he was asleep in your rocking chair instead of in your bed was enough of a clue as to trouble in paradise.”

Sabrina faltered.

“Nick was here last night?”

“Passed out in your chair,” Zelda repeated. She blew a perfect smoke circle. “Bit pathetic, honestly.”

“He must have come here after he left Dorian’s,” Ambrose mused. Prudence nodded her agreement.

“I want his portal to teleport into my room revoked,” Sabrina stated. “He has no place in my bedroom anymore.”

“I will do no such thing,” Zelda informed her niece. “Nicholas has proven to be a valuable asset to us. He needs a means of getting here from the Academy safely and the portal in your room allows that.”

“But…”

“It’s not up for discussion,” Zelda cut her off in that way of hers that told her she absolutely meant it. “Your personal problems with Nicholas are just that – yours.”

Sabrina glowered. Ambrose decided to intervene.

“Cousin, how about you and I walk to the Academy today? Just the pair of us, a nice walk, fresh air? It’s been a bit since you were able to walk to school, hasn’t it?”

“Fine,” Sabrina huffed. “As long as she,” she jabbed her finger in Prudence’s direction again, “doesn’t come.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Prudence quipped.

“We will talk later,” Ambrose told her as he stood. Prudence nodded. She knew he meant it as a warning that he wasn’t happy with her. “Come, cousin.”

Sabrina gathered her bag and accepted a napkin with a square of oatmeal bake from Hilda. She pounced once she and Ambrose were outside.

“So you are taking Nick’s side then?” she asked.

“I would like to wring his neck,” Ambrose corrected. “I considered it last night. You are, of course, my ride or die, as the mortals say.” That made Sabrina smile a bit. “But Nicholas looked rather pathetic sitting at the bar nursing a tumbler of bourbon and there is the fact that if his cover gets blown, mine likely goes up with it.”

“You went looking for him last night?” Sabrina questioned.

“Prudence showed up and asked me to check on him,” Ambrose admitted. “I only did it because she made it sound like he was roaring drunk and I was afraid he would, in fact, blow our cover. Instead, I found a sad, mopey warlock that was barely even tipsy because he had enough sense to know he needed to keep his wits about him. He loves you, Sabrina. I don’t agree with what he did, but I do believe he loves you.”

“You don’t place bets on how quickly you can take the virginity of someone you love,” Sabrina stated in her stubborn way. “Don’t defend him, Ambrose. Don’t you dare.”

“I’m on your side,” Ambrose assured her once more. “But Sabrina, we are in a predicament at the moment, a predicament that Nicholas is deeply involved with. Like it or not, he is not going anywhere. You are going to have to deal with him being around.”

“Maybe I will just let Blackwood have him,” she said crossly.

“You don’t mean that,” Ambrose called her out. “I know you are mad at him. Rightfully so. But you don’t want anything to happen to him. You would be devastated if something happened to him.”

“Could you just let me be mad?” Sabrina requested. “That’s what I need right now – to be mad at him. I think I _deserve_ to be mad.”

“You do,” Ambrose nodded. “But perhaps try not to burn something down in the process of being mad at him?”

“I’ll do my best,” Sabrina grumbled. “What about you? Explain Prudence. Why was she at the breakfast table this morning? She is just as much to blame for this as Nicholas is.”

“She was worried about Nicholas and I believe feeling a bit guilty for her part in all of this. Given that he wasn’t exactly receptive to her, she asked me to step in. I know you don’t like her – bet notwithstanding – but she has changed, Sabrina. Whatever happened between her and Blackwood shifted something in her. I think she even feels _guilty_ about her part in the bet. We both know that’s not a feeling she is familiar with.”

“I want her nowhere near me, guilty feelings or not,” Sabrina stated. “I’ll curse her if she tries.”

“Remind me to have Hilda spike your tea with something to take the edge off of your rage tonight,” Ambrose noted. “Otherwise you may just burn down the mortuary despite my best efforts to stop you.”

Sabrina only glared.

They reached the Academy. She spied Dorcas and Agatha huddled together in a corner almost right away. Agatha was trying to convince Dorcas to remove the veil she wore. While it was impossible to see through the thick fabric, there was no hiding the fact that her nose was infinitely longer than before.

“Prudence,” Ambrose supplied. “She warned her sisters to keep the bet to themselves. She told me she ‘took care of’ Dorcas. I suppose whatever is hidden by her veil is how.”

“How nice of her,” Sabrina grumbled.

“This is where I leave you,” Ambrose said as they paused in the entry. He wasn’t entirely sorry to be rid of her given her current mood. “Do try to behave?”

“I make no promises,” Sabrina shot back. She was in a mood. She was angry. She couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t curse the first person that annoyed her, consequences be damned. She didn’t like to stew. She liked to act, to take her anger, rage, passion, whatever she was feeling, out on something. Containing all of that in the walls of the Academy felt like a tall order as they parted ways and Sabrina attempted to make it to her first class without incident.

“Sabrina?”

She stopped and closed her eyes.

Of course Nick had found her. Every other morning when she had actually wanted to see him, he was nowhere to be found. Today, when he was the absolute last person she wanted to see, he was there.

“I have nothing to say to you,” she informed him without turning to him. “I’ve got school.”

“Not for another ten minutes,” he stood is ground. “Please, Sabrina, just a few minutes…”

“I don’t want to do this, Nicholas.”

His hand closed around her wrist, his touch both firm and gentle.

“Please,” he said again. He didn’t bother to hide the desperation in his tone. “Please, Sabrina, talk to me…”

Sabrina turned with the intention of telling him off. She faltered as she took him in. The Nick she knew was always put together, especially early in the morning when he presented himself to the rest of the world for the day. Today, his clothes – the Judas Boys unform – were clean, but his curls were unruly, his eyes bloodshot, the bags under them heavy. She thought he might even be a bit pale, a feat for olive skin.

Nick seized her silence.

“I fell for you, Sabrina,” he told her. If there was ever a time to put his heart on the line, this was it. “I fell in love with you and until last night, that was the scariest thing that had ever happened to me. I didn’t come to Greendale to fall in love or to even stay. I was here because I had to be, and I decided to enjoy my time the way I always had in the past – sex and debauchery. Except I fell in love with _you_ and you changed everything.”

“What happened last night?” Sabrina questioned, momentarily distracted by the idea that something had happened with Blackwood. Nick’s eyes never left hers.

“I lost you.” He still had her wrist in is hand. He slid his grip down so he could catch her fingers with his. She didn’t pull away, caught up in his words. “Turns out, the idea of not having you in my life is a Heaven of a lot scarier than falling in love with you.”

Sabrina closed her eyes. She wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe what they had was real. But what she wanted didn’t change the fact that he had made the bet in the first place. It didn’t change the fact that she doubted everything.

“What were the terms?” she asked, opening her eyes to his. “If you would have won this bet – if you would have managed to get me to sleep with you – what was in it for you?”

“The loser had to do a feat of magic for the winner, no questions asked,” Nick admitted. “It was stupid, Sabrina, and I called it off because I knew it was wrong. I couldn’t allow anything else to happen between us until I told you the truth. And I tried to tell you – I would have told you. I was going to tell you when Theo and Roz showed up. I tried, too, when Blackwood summoned me right after I joined the Judas Boys. I love you, Spellman. You taught me how to love. And I will do anything – anything – to earn your forgiveness. I’m sorry, Sabrina. I am so sorry.”

Sabrina fought back her tears. A few minutes ago, she was ready to burn down the world. Now, she wanted to cry all of her feelings out. She couldn’t, not in the middle of the Academy before classes even started, so she stood there, forced her tears back, and hoped her bottom lip wasn’t trembling as much as it felt like it was.

“I don’t know that I can ever trust you again,” she managed.

Nick, too, looked near tears. He took a step towards her as though he were going to pull her to him but then thought better of it.

“I pray that’s not true.”

The warning chime of the bell sounded, reminded them class was about to begin.

“I have to go to class,” she told him.

“Sabrina…”

“I can’t do this right now,” Sabrina shook her head.

“After school then…”

“No,” Sabrina insisted. “I don’t want to talk to you, Nicholas. I have nothing to say to you, nor do I want to hear anything you have to say. And stay out of my room. My auntie may not feel a need to close off access, but that doesn’t mean you can use it freely, not anymore.”

“Please, Sabrina…” He was begging now and didn’t even care.

“I have to go.”

“Sabrina…”

She turned and slipped into her classroom without a backwards glance.

Nick leaned against the wall outside the door as a few stragglers hurried to their classes around him. They gave him a wide berth, still convinced he was evil personified after summoning Satanachia. He would guess at least a few of them had already heard about the bet to boot. Dorcas was hard to miss with her veil and protruding nose.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He had always wanted to fall in love, experience what the mortals experienced. He thought it would be a fun experiment, something to say he did.

Had he known it would hurt this much to lose it, he would have never allowed himself to fall.

But had he never allowed it, he wouldn’t have fallen for Sabrina. He wouldn’t have known, if only for a brief time, what it felt like to be wanted, cared for, maybe even loved because sometimes he would catch her looking at him or feel something in her touch and think maybe, just maybe, she felt the same way he did. He took a deep breath and pushed himself off the wall.

He would give Sabrina some space, he decided. He would let her have some time to be hurt and angry. Then he would swoop in and try to win her back. He would earn her trust, prove his love.

Even if it meant staying in Greendale far longer than he ever intended to be there.

* * *

Sabrina knocked on the Walker’s front door and waited. To her relief, it was Roz that opened it.

“Sabrina?” she asked in surprise.

“Hey,” Sabrina shrugged with a sad smile. “I wanted to stop by, check in…”

Roz surveyed her.

“You’re not okay, are you?” she asked despite already knowing the answer. Sabrina shook her head.

“I could use my best friend,” she said.

“Come in,” Roz opened the door wider. “It’s just you and me.” Sabrina gratefully followed Roz inside. The old friends settled on the living room couch. Roz turned her inquisitive eyes on Sabrina. “Tell me what’s wrong. Is it Nick?”

“You know how I told you I could trust him?” Sabrina asked. Roz nodded. “Turns out, our relationship was nothing more than a bet he made with Prudence.”

“A bet?” Roz questioned.

“That Nick could get me to sleep with him within a month’s time.” Roz looked appropriately appalled. “Suffices to say, we are over.”

“Wow,” Roz shook her head in disbelief. “When I picked up on there being something off with him, I didn’t think it would be something like this. I really thought he loved you.”

“He says he does,” Sabrina confessed. “He told me when I found out about the bet, then he told me again this morning when he stopped me before class.” She played with fringe of a throw pillow. “He snuck into my bedroom and slept in my rocking chair last night. He was gone before I woke up. I would have never known had Zelda not checked in on me.”

“Wait, have you two…” Roz trailed off and raised her eyebrows.

“No,” Sabrina shook her heard. “But he’s slept in my bed the last several nights. Things were progressing in that direction, but we didn’t. Thank Satan.” Roz raised her eyebrows even higher at the swear but didn’t comment. “I just can’t believe I fell for him. I knew better.”

“I’m sorry, Sabrina,” Roz offered. She considered her friend. “How did you find out about the bet?”

“He told me. Only after Prudence’s sister brought it up.” She leaned into the cushions and pulled her knees to her chest. “He said he tried to tell me. Thinking back, I think he did. But it wouldn’t make any difference. We would still be over.”

“Have you talked to him?” Roz wondered. “Really talked to him, not just heated emotional moments? Heard him out about his side of things?”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “Just the big bet reveal and then a few minutes outside of class this morning. Those discussions were basically a lot of him pleading his case and me refusing to listen.”

“Maybe you should,” Roz encouraged. “Hear him out, I mean. I really don’t feel like he’s a bad guy, Sabrina. He did a stupid thing and I’m so angry at him for hurting you, but I also feel like, I don’t know, the two of you need to talk.” She assumed it was some sort of intuitive hit from this cunning curse she had, but she felt it in her bones – Nick had made a mistake, but he cared about Sabrina. “If nothing else, it will give you closure.”

“You don’t feel like he’s a bad guy and yet you asked me if I trusted him?” Sabrina questioned.

“I don’t really understand this whole cunning thing yet, but yeah, when it comes to Nick, I feel like at his core, he’s a decent guy,” she confirmed. “But he’s also complicated. There is a lot of energy around him. When I think of him or he comes to mind, I feel like…” She paused for a moment, trying to find the best way to explain it. “I feel like a radio trying to tune into a station that almost comes in, but not quite. I can’t get a clear signal through all the static and noise.”

“’Complicated’ is certainly the word for him,” Sabrina sighed. “And an out of tune radio is a decent analogy.” She decided she didn’t want to talk about Nick anymore. That was how it had been all day – she waffled between wanting to stew on his betrayal to wanting to think about anything else but him. “But speaking of the cunning, how are you? How is Theo? Harvey?”

“Weird,” Roz admitted. “All of us are – weird. You’re a witch, I’m seeing things, Harvey is a witch hunter, Theo thinks its all oh so cool. Things are just – weird. But as for the cunning, it feels – useful. Honestly? If I could keep my eyesight, I don’t think I would mind the visions sticking around. I’ve been trying to learn how to use it, but it’s slow going. Gran said it would be, that it would all come into focus over time. She was twenty before she got the hang of hers.”

“We can help,” Sabrina offered. “My aunts and I…”

“I’m still not sure about all of that,” Roz told her gently but firmy. “But I’ll think about it, okay?”

“That’s the best I’m going to get, isn’t it?”

“For now,” Roz nodded. She had to smile a bit at Sabrina’s resigned expression. She knew how hard it was for her friend to sit back and wait to be needed. “As for Harvey, Theo is with him right now. He is pretty conflicted about all of this. He doesn’t want to be a witch hunter. He doesn’t want to hurt you or your family. But it’s his family and they make it out to be an obligation. He is really struggling with all of this, with the fact that you’re a witch.”

“There has to be a way to stop them and keep Harvey from doing something he will regret to me and my family – or to his,” Sabrina pondered. “We can deal with the witch part of all of this later, once we’re all safe again.”

“He turns eighteen in two days,” Roz reminded her. “He said he feels like he has a target on his back.”

“I know that feeling all too well,” Sabrina replied as she thought back to her sixteenth birthday. “We will find a way through this.” She smiled ruefully. “We always do.”

“Does stuff like this happen to you a lot?” Roz wondered. “Witch hunters and such?”

“Witch hunters is a first,” Sabrina shrugged. “But stuff does tend to happen to my family. Remember last year, when that tornado hit?” Roz nodded. “That was us. A group of witches basically came back from the dead and tried to end the town. We conjured the tornado to keep everyone safe while we rid Greendale of them.”

That was the abridged version at least.

“Wow,” Roz breathed. “Are you and your family and the others why it always feels a bit like Halloween around here?”

“Greendale is the root of a lot of magic,” Sabrina confirmed. “My family has been here for centuries. The Academy is here. Whether you are a witch or not, you can feel it.”

“I can,” Roz nodded. “I’ve always felt something. Goosebumps, odd breezes…”

“I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you…”

“Don’t apologize again,” Roz shook her head. “I have been thinking about it. It is a lot to take in, but Theo and I agree – you are still our friend. You are still _Sabrina._ The fact that you are a witch will take some getting used to, but I have known you my whole life. You are _you._ Sure, you can do magic, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re still the girl I call my best friend.”

Sabrina’s eyes watered.

“Thank you, Roz,” she said. “I needed to hear you say that. Especially right now.”

Roz reached to hug her. They embraced for nearly a full minute before Roz pulled away, both girls wiping at their eyes.

“When you were talking about fitting in at your new school that evening I came over after the Valentine’s Day dance, you meant you were struggling with your two halves and finding your place, didn’t you?” Roz asked.

“It’s been hard,” Sabrina nodded. “I didn’t fit in at Baxter High because I had to hide my magic. I don’t fit in at the Academy because I’m half mortal and the High Priest has made the others believe that’s a bad thing. That’s one of the things I like about Nick…” She stopped. “Liked about Nick,” she corrected. “He didn’t mind that I was half mortal. At least, I don’t think he did. It’s hard to say now.”

“I would hazard a guess that he doesn’t mind you are half mortal one bit,” Roz chanced. Sabrina didn’t look convinced. “Talk to him, ‘Brina. Hear him out. I think you need to. You will either start to patch things up or start to move on, but I don’t think anything will happen until you talk to him.”

“I’m not ready to talk to him,” Sabrina determined. “Everything is too fresh.”

“That’s fair,” Roz agreed. She reached out and squeezed Sabrina’s hand. “I’m here,” she reminded her. “For boy problems, witch problems…” Sabrina chuckled.

“The same goes for you,” she said. “Boy problems, cunning problems…”

“Best friends forever?” Roz asked.

“Best friends forever,” Sabrina confirmed with a return squeeze of Roz’s hand. “I should go. I’m already breaking rank by coming here instead of going straight home. Family rule while Blackwood and the witch hunters are on the lose. I just needed my best friend.”

“I’m always here,” Roz said again. “And you’re right – we will find a way through this. All of us.”

“There is always a way,” Sabrina agreed. Roz walked with her outside. They exchanged another hug. “If you decide you want our help with your eyes…”

“I’ll let you know,” Roz said pointedly. “Talk to you soon?”

“Talk to you soon,” Sabrina promised. She stepped off the porch and turned back to face Roz. “I’m off.” She teleported away, leaving Roz open jawed at the fact that her best friend had just vanished into thin air.

* * *

Nick huffed as he pushed his way through the thick underbrush. It was cold, nearly dark, foggy, and a light rain had started to fall. Of all the things Blackwood had requested of him, he decided in the moment that this was the most outlandish, second only to having to summon Satanachia to attack Sabrina.

He was to find a wolf and bring its heart to Blackwood for some ritual he planned to perform. It was cruel irony that he was to kill a wolf this soon after Amalia’s death and he thought that was the exact reason Blackwood had him do it.

Except he couldn’t find a damned wolf.

No matter how deep into the woods he went, there simply weren’t any. It wasn’t like the woods were overflowing with the things, but there were typically one or two around. He did another spell, hoping to unveil the location of one, but came up empty handed yet again. This wasn’t what he wanted to be doing, but he supposed it was at least something to keep him busy instead of sulking about Sabrina. Because other than a trip to the sanctum, he had certainly sulked the entire day, tucked away in his bedroom and dreaming up one scenario after another in which he cornered Sabrina, told her how he felt, begged for another chance. All of those scenarios had ended up with her in his arms. He had even considered not coming when Blackwood summoned him, but that would be detrimental to not just him, but the Spellmans too.

So now he was looking for a damned wolf.

He hoped this ended soon. He hoped he didn’t have to keep walking this line between the Spellmans and Blackwood, worried at every turn his cover was going to be gone and not only would he go down, the Spellmans would, too. He couldn’t let anything happen to Sabrina and that meant keeping her family safe as well.

He was so wrapped up in his own inner monologue and how his jacket wasn’t doing enough to keep the chill and damp out that he didn’t hear the stick break. He didn’t pay attention to the way the leaves moved somewhere behind him.

“Gotcha.”

He never saw the gun raise.

By the time he heard the crack of the shot, it was too late.

* * *

Sabrina dragged herself into her bedroom with the same level of tiredness she had felt after the Greendale Thirteen came to town. She had only been home from Roz’s for a few minutes before Theo turned up. She had spent the evening answering his questions and demonstrating her magic while talking ad nauseum about both Harvey and Roz’s situations. He had stayed for dinner and she had broken the rules to teleport him home after dessert, just because his genuine curiosity about her magic was so refreshing. It had been nice to spend some one on one time with him. He had also proven to be an adequate distraction from any thoughts of Nick.

Salem meowed a greeting.

“Hey, Salem,” she replied as she rubbed his head. “I’m going to go to bed. I’m exhausted.” He meowed again. “I know I have homework. I’ll worry about that later.” Another meow. Her brow furrowed. “Go look on me bed?” She gave him a curious look but crossed the room to her bed.

There, laying in the middle of it, was one of her father’s journals.

She picked it up and opened it. It was the fourth and final one. She looked back to Salem.

“Nick was here?”

Salem’s meow told her Nick had shown up several hours ago, deposited the journal, and left again all within the matter of a minute. She wished the gesture didn’t tug at her heartstrings. Deep – deep – down she thought she might believe Nick was genuine in his apology and even in his feelings for her. But she wasn’t ready to dive into that yet. Right now, she just wanted to be mad at him. She wanted to stew in her anger and push him away and vow to never speak to him again. It was easier than facing the truth.

Salem meowed.

_He seemed upset._

“Upset?” Sabrina repeated as she sat down to remove her shoes. “He has nothing to be upset about. He was the one that made the bet. He was the one that put my virginity on the line just so he could have Prudence read some minds. I don’t particularly care if he was upset. And I’m rather tired of everyone offering him any semblance of a defense.”

And that was all she had to say on the matter.

She found a pair of pajamas – careful to ignore the folded bottoms and t-shirt that belonged to Nick that she had carefully tucked back in her drawer when he had left them there again – and went through her bedtime routine. Even though she was tired, she settled in and picked up the journal. She meant to put it down after a few pages, but she couldn’t. It was one last journal, one last link to her father. She also kept glancing to the space before her bed. She wouldn’t dare admit why. Salem called her out.

“I’m not waiting for Nick,” she insisted. “I’m reading my father’s journal.”

_You think he’s going to come._

“No, I don’t. I told him not to. If he does show up, I will send him away.”

Salem meowed his disagreement.

“Whose side are you on anyway?” she asked. “You are _my_ familiar, remember?”

_I’m on your side._

“Then act like it!”

Salem dropped it but continued to shoot her pointed glares as he settled at the foot of her bed. Sabrina ignored him. Eventually, she turned out the lights and tried to get comfortable.

She could ignore Salem, but it was a lot harder to ignore how cold and empty her bed felt.

It was impossible to ignore the fact that the soft ‘pop’ announcing Nick’s arrival never came.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As Taylor would say, no one likes a mad woman. But she's got a right to be mad - even if she's had a few people tell her 'hey, maybe you should talk to him...' As for Nick... whatever could have happened? 
> 
> Next update: The plot thickens.
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like action...

Nick felt like someone was holding him under water. His body was heavy, his head still heavier. He tried to sit up but was met by a searing pain that caused him to cry out in pain as he skewed his eyes shut and fell back to the mattress.

Mattress.

When in the Heaven was he?

He opened his eyes again as the pain ebbed and cautiously looked around.

He was in a small room, so small he thought he might be able to reach out and touch the opposite wall with his hand form there he lay. He tried to push himself up to his elbows once more, this time expecting the pain that came with moving.

He didn’t get far.

“Dammit!”

He was chained to the bed, if one could call the thing mattress a bed, by Damascus steel. He was trapped and powerless.

He had to figure out where he was.

The door pushed open and a figure he recognized too well stumped in.

“You!” he hissed.

Mr. Kinkle chuckled.

“Recognize me, do you? Told that Blackwood character you did. He said it was impossible, that you had never seen me before. I don’t know how you recognized me in that damned diner my grandson loves so much, but you most certainly did. I knew then that you would be a problem.”

“I saw you at the Academy,” Nick informed him. “You and Blackwood aren’t as under the radar as you would like to believe.”

“Whether or not you’re on to me and that blasted man isn’t much concern now,” Mr. Kinkle shrugged. “I’ve gotcha where I need you.”

“Why am I still alive?” Nick pressed. “You wouldn’t keep me alive unless you had a greater purpose.”

“Blackwood did warn me you were smart,” Mr. Kinkle nodded. A smarmy smile played on his lips. “He told me to be on my toes when I went out hunting ya, but you were so lost in your head when I tracked you down I needn’t worry. You were an easy hit.”

“Why am I still alive?” Nic asked again. There was more at play. A witch hunter didn’t keep their prey alive just because. He sat up as much as his chains and injuries would allow.

“Why the girl, of course,” Mr. Kinkle shrugged. “She will come to rescue you, but find my family lying in wait instead. Blackwood said it was a shame to have to sacrifice you to the cause, but it must be done. Although I reckon he don’t know you seem to have an ulterior motive if you’ve been sleuthing around that school of his.”

“I won’t let you hurt Sabrina,” Nick informed him. He braced himself against the pain. “Harvey won’t let anything happen to her either.”

Mr. Kinkle chuckled.

“Harvey is a Kinkle,” he told Nick. “He will do what is expected of him. As for you, I’ve put a well-placed bullet laced with holy water through you and have Damascus steel preventing your magic. Your words are but empty threats. You’ll lure the girl here and then you two will die together.” Nick glared at him. “I’d say enjoy your stay at the Kinkle lodge, Mr. Scratch, but I don’t plan to make it pleasant.”

With that, he left, his stumpy gait fading down the hallway.

Nick fell back onto the bed with a grunt.

The bullet was still in him. Everything hurt, but he focused on the epicenter of the pain to determine it had entered through his back, his upper left shoulder. Not a kill shot, but enough to weaken him. If it was laced with Holy Water, then it was slowly poisoning him.

His thoughts weren’t for himself, however.

They were for Sabrina.

And how in the Heaven he was going to save her while he was wounded and chained to a bed in a house full of witch hunters.

He had no idea.

He tugged at the chains. The bed they were attached to was made of solid oak wood and he was weak. They didn’t budge. There was no chance of breaking free. He would need another way.

Time passed.  
He grew weaker.

He faded in and out of consciousness, even as he fought to remain alert. He didn’t move much. He needed to conserve what little energy he had. He would need it if and when Sabrina came calling. He continued to try in vain to think of what to do, a way out of this, but nothing came to him. He was useless without his magic, without his own brute strength.

His thoughts grew ever more erratic as the holy water seeped into his veins.

Sabrina’s face swam in and out of focus before him. He knew she was a hallucination. Sometimes she was laughing, other times looking at him with all the adoration in the world. The worst was when scenes from outside of Dorian’s and in the hallway at the Academy the last time he had saw her appeared. He didn’t want this. He didn’t want to leave her. He certainly didn’t want to leave her upset with him. That wasn’t the last memory he wanted her to have of him.

The door opened again.

Nick managed to pry his eyes open, expecting Mr. Kinkle once more.

“Harvey.”

The farm boy stood a safe distance away, eyes on him. Harvey was his only chance. As much as he didn’t want to, he had to try to appeal to him. Nick struggled to bring himself up on one elbow.

“Sabrina,” he breathed. “Harvey, you can’t…” He was weak, but this was important. “Don’t let her anywhere near here. You don’t want to kill her. Or her family. I know you don’t. She told me about the pair of you. She loved you once and I know you loved her, too. Please, don’t let her get hurt.”

“She’s a witch,” Harvey said. “I’m a witch hunter. I’m supposed to hunt her kind. Your kind.”

“Just because some societal rule in your world says that you are supposed to hunt us doesn’t mean you have to follow it,” Nick told him. “Sabrina believes you wouldn’t hurt her. Please, don’t prove her wrong.”

Nick could see something in Harvey that told him his appeal was working. Sabrina had believed from the beginning that Harvey wasn’t capable of harming her. He had to believe that was true now. He kept going.

“I don’t want to hurt her…”

“Then don’t! Ah!” Nick had tried to surge upward to make his point, but his pain was too much. He closed his eyes and took in fast, rapid breaths

“I brought you something to eat,” Harvey offered in a timid way. Nick pried one eye open to look at him. He noticed the paper plate with a half of a sandwich on it then.

“You honestly think I’m going to eat anything brought to me in a witch hunter’s house?”

“I’m not supposed to be in here at all,” Harvey informed him. “I’m certainly not supposed to be bringing you food. It’s not much – just half of a turkey sandwich – but it’s something.”

“Why?” Nick wondered. “Why bring me food if I’m just going to die anyway?”

Harvey sighed.

“I don’t want to hurt Sabrina,” he admitted. “I don’t like you, but I don’t want to hurt you either. At least, I don’t want to kill you. I wouldn’t mind decking you in the jaw though.”

“Here’s your chance,” Nick fired back. “Chained and powerless is the only opportunity you will have to get one over on me.”

“Don’t tempt me,” Harvey spat. “Like I said, I don’t want to hurt Sabrina. I’m not a killer. But it’s in my blood. I have to choose between my ex-girlfriend and my family.”

“Choose Sabrina,” Nick nearly begged. “She is everything good and right in this world, regardless of whether she is a witch or not. You know that, Harvey. Don’t take a girl like her out of this world. Don’t let your family take her out of this world.”

“She is a good person,” Harvey agreed in a small contemplative voice. “I’m between a rock and a hard place, Scratch.”

“Just save Sabrina,” Nick let his head fall back to the sorry excuse for a pillow. He was rapidly running out of the strength to keep fighting no matter how badly he wanted – needed – to. The holy water was doing its job. “I don’t care what happens to me, so long as she lives.”

He found he really didn’t. He only wanted her to be safe. He would likely die in this dingy room at the hand of a Kinkle, but as long as Sabrina survived, he didn’t care. His life for hers was a price he would pay again and again.

“I don’t know if I can save Sabrina,” Harvey confessed. “My grandpa, my dad… My uncles and some cousins… I don’t know if I can stop them.”

“You can,” Nick encouraged him as he fought to hold onto consciousness. “You have to.” He coughed then, a violent cough, one that was deep and painful.

“You need water,” Harvey said automatically. He didn’t understand it. He was supposed to instinctively want to fight Nick, to murder him. He felt rage bubbling below the surface, but it felt driven by the fact that Nick, his polar opposite in every way, was the guy his ex-girlfriend, his first love, chose to move on with and not the fact that he was a warlock. It was the kind of rage that wanted to manifest in the form of a fist fight, not cold blood. He simply couldn’t see himself as a killer, no matter how hard he tried to lean into what he was told he was supposed to be. “I’ll get you some. It might take me a few minutes to get back. I have to get past my family…”

“Water won’t help,” Nick rasped. “It’s the holy water the bullet was laced with. It’s in my blood stream and reaching my lungs.”

“How can I help?” Harvey heard himself ask. He didn’t know what he was doing, offering to help Nicholas Scratch of all people, but it felt like the right thing to do.”

“Sabrina,” Nick said again. “Just… Help Sabrina.” He closed his eyes as a fresh wave of pain overtook him. “Please.”

Harvey stood in the doorway and watched the warlock’s labored breathing. He saw the sweat that peppered Nick’s forehead, the way his face twisted in pain. He felt Nick’s genuine concern for Sabrina down to his very bones, had no doubt that his only request was for Sabrina’s safety. He listened as another violent coughing spell raked through Nick’s body.

He had to make a choice.

Sabrina or his family.

It felt impossible.

And yet there was only one choice to make.

He rejoined his family.

* * *

“There you are,” Hilda greeted Ambrose.

“You look like Heaven,” Sabrina added from her spot at the end of the couch as she took in Ambrose’s haggard appearance. She was curled up in her pajamas, a cup of hot chocolate in hand. She had spent the evening lamenting to Hilda about the woes of her relationship with Nicholas. It wasn’t quite the Friday night she would have liked – she would have liked to have spent it with her friends – but it was something. Except Hilda’s hot chocolate didn’t make her feel better the way it used to. She blamed that on Nick, too. Had he never made her his mother’s hot chocolate, Hilda’s would have done the trick.

“It’s been a Heaven of a day,” Ambrose replied in a weary manner “And it’s about to be an even worse night.”

Sabrina frowned.

“Why?” Prudence appeared behind him then. “Oh,” she stated. “That’s why.”

“Oh shut up, Sabrina,” Prudence snipped. “I’m not in the mood for you.” Sabrina took a good look at her. She, too, looked worse for the wear.

“What have the two of you done?” she wondered.

“Not us,” Ambrose shook his head. “Zelda.”

Zelda appeared then. She carried a bundle of blankets. Sabrina’s frown deepened.

“Is that…

“A baby?” Hilda finished as she rose to her feet. “Zelda, why do you have a baby?”

“It’s Blackwood’s,” Zelda stated. Sabrina too got to her feet. Zelda uncovered the baby. “It’s a girl.”

“We told Blackwood one of the twins died,” Prudence explained. “That the other, a boy, was too powerful, too strong. He consumed his own brother. We knew he would kill her straightaway if we let him see that it was a girl.”

“Wait… Lady Blackwood had her babies…” Sabrina tried to understand what was happening.

“Constance is dead,” Zelda said in a formal sort of way. “I recruited Prudence to help me deliver the babes. Blackwood has the boy, but I would not allow harm to come to this darling girl.”

“So you stole his baby,” Sabrina said slowly.

“Oh Zelda…” Hilda bit her thumb in a worried manner. “What on earth are we going to do?”

“Keep her here, keep her safe,” Zelda said with certainty. “We can’t let Blackwood find her.”

“And how, exactly, are we going to keep a newborn under wraps?” Hilda questioned. “Especially from the very High Priest we are trying to bring down?”

“Told you the night was going to get worse,” Ambrose muttered. Zelda glared at him. He just shrugged. He was at his wits end for the night and didn’t much care if he made her mad.

“You don’t get to lecture me on my choices for a very long time,” Sabrina stated, eyes on Zelda and the baby. “You kidnapped a baby. Oh my Satan…”

“We will call her Leticia,” Zelda ignored Sabrina. “Hilda? Help me check her over and get her settled.” Hilda hurried after Zelda, asking questions as she went. Sabrina turned to Ambrose.

“And what were you doing while Prudence and Zelda committed a kidnapping?”

“It’s not a kidnapping, it’s a rescue,” Prudence snipped. “Any more of that hot chocolate by chance? I’m famished. Lady Blackwood was in labor for hours.”

“I’ll second that,” Ambrose said. “I’d prefer a roast, but hot chocolate will do.”

“In the kitchen,” Sabrina nodded. She waited until all three of them were settled around the kitchen table with hot chocolate and a plate of cookies to share before she continued her questioning. “Well Ambrose? What was your role in this?”

“I kept Blackwood busy,” he said. “No easy feat, seeing as he’s the one giving orders. Good for us he’s not the kind of husband that wants to be by his wife’s side during labor. I got to venture in for updates several times too many, however.” He had heard enough screaming and saw far too much for his liking. Lady Blackwood’s delivery had served as an excellent reminder to always use a protection charm during his escapades. He sipped his hot chocolate and looked to Sabrina. “Speaking of orders, have you heard from Nicholas, Sabrina?”

“Nope,” she popped the ‘p.’ “Not since he stopped me before class yesterday morning.”

“Nothing else since?” Ambrose continued. “At all?”

“The last of my father’s journals was on my bed when I got home yesterday. Salem said Nick had left it hours earlier. I told him to stay away – I’m a bit surprised he’s heading my wishes.” It was almost disorienting. She had expected him to be begging forgiveness at every turn, but she hadn’t caught sight of so much as a curl at the Academy all day. Prudence and Ambrose exchanged a worried look. Sabrina noticed. “What? What’s going on?”

“No one has seen Nicholas since yesterday,” Prudence told her.

“One of the Judas Boys reported seeing him leave the Academy in the late afternoon, a bit before sunset. That was the last of it.”

Sabrina felt something inside her flip over. It felt a lot like worry.

“He probably took off,” she said, trying to appear unconcerned. “I’m sure he is living it up in some foreign country, enjoying his newfound freedom.”

“I don’t think so,” Prudence shook her head. “He wouldn’t up and leave. Not now.”

“He has no reason to stay,” Sabrina challenged her. Prudence didn’t back down.

“He has every reason to stay.” Sabrina set her jaw. Prudence meant her, but she wasn’t sure she agreed with that statement. “That fool of a warlock loves you, Sabrina. But that’s not the most pressing matter here. Nicholas has disappeared. We need to find him.”

“You have said it yourself, cousin,” Ambrose urged as gently as he could. “Bad things happen to people when they get too close to Blackwood.”

Sabrina gave in to the worry that wanted to overtake her.

“Any ideas?” she asked. “Do you know what Blackwood might have asked of him?”

“Blackwood tends to not confide in us about what he’s asked others to do,” Ambrose reported. “Nick and I generally tell each other – talk therapy just as much as finding a way to stop him – but not until after the deed is done. I suppose he could have sent Nick on a mission of some sort, but if it were going to take longer than a few hours, I imagine Nicholas would have sent word. I can’t see him up and disappearing, even on Blackwood’s orders.”

“We have to find him,” Sabrina abandoned all pretense as the reality of Nick’s disappearance sank in. “He could be in danger.”

“Someone certainly changed their tune rather fast,” Prudence observed.

“Just because I’m mad at Nicholas doesn’t mean I want something to happen to him,” Sabrina snapped. “He’s in this mess because of me anyway.”

“Shouldn’t that tell you something about how he feels about you?” Prudence asked. Sabrina gave her a pointed look, but she had to admit the witch was right. Bet or not, Nick didn’t have to get involved with Blackwood on her behalf. But he had and now she needed to find him. She told herself that Nick could be perfectly safe and off doing whatever he would have done before he arrived in Greendale. But if he was in trouble, she owed it to him to help him.

“Okay,” Ambrose nodded once. “Let’s think this through. You last saw Nicholas yesterday morning. He showed up here at some point to leave your father’s journal. He left the Academy yesterday before sunset…”

There was an urgent knock at the front door.

“Oh dear Satan,” he groaned. “Who would that be so late at night?”

“Blackwood?” Prudence guessed, a note of fear in her voice. “The baby…”

“It’s not Blackwood,” Sabrina said with certainty as she stood to go to the door. “I doubt he would be able to get through the boundaries if he came here with intent to harm us. I saw how quickly they will flip on someone when they wouldn’t let Harvey through. Besides, if it were Blackwood – or any of his Boys – they wouldn’t knock, would they? Not anymore. And even if it were, the baby is upstairs. We can buy time if we need to.”

The knock sounded again.

“I swear to Satan if it’s a family with a dead body,” Ambrose muttered as he stood to follow her. They typically got a heads up when a body was on the way, but once in a while, someone just – showed up. The Spellmans had a reputation of not asking any questions.

Somehow, Prudence got to the door first. She peered through the peephole.

“It’s a small scrawny boy and a girl with a lot of hair,” she reported.

“Theo and Roz!” Sabrina pushed past Prudence just as another round of knocking sounded and threw the door open. Sure enough, her friends were there.

“Sabrina!” Roz breathed. “Thank God you’re home…”

“What are you two doing here?” Sabrina questioned. “What’s going on?”

“It’s Harvey,” Theo stated. Prudence sniffed her disapproval. “He came to Roz’s a bit ago. His family has Nick!”

Sabrina’s blood ran cold.

“Where are they?” she demanded. “What else did Harvey say?”

“Ask him yourself.” Roz stepped aside and waved her hand. Harvey stood in the yard, just beyond the gate. He looked scared. Sabrina raced past them, barefoot and in her pajamas.

“Harvey!” she called out. “Where is he?”

“My family’s hunting cabin,” he answered without hesitation. He looked terrified, pale. “My grandfather shot him, and my uncles brought him there.”

“He’s been shot?” Sabrina had to steady herself on the fencepost. Her mind replayed the moment from just yesterday morning when she told Ambrose she should just let Blackwood have Nick. Her stomach churned. She swallowed down acid. Her worst fears were manifesting before her.

“They didn’t shoot to kill,” Harvey continued in an urgent manner. “They are using him to lure you out to the cabin with the intention of attacking. He’s not doing well, Sabrina. He’s been in and out of consciousness, but he said the bullet is laced with holy water…”

“Is it still in him?” Ambrose broke in. “The bullet, I mean?” Harvey nodded. Ambrose cursed. “It’s poisoning him. He needs treatment immediately or he won’t make it.”

Sabrina could feel her heart beating in her ears.

“He has a fever,” Harvey shared. “It’s really high. He’s coughing, too. Weak. They have him chained up…”

“Damascus steel,” Sabrina said without doubt. “He can’t do magic.” It kept getting worse for Nick.

“I don’t know what to do.” Harvey looked utterly lost. “I have been trying to sneak him food, water, but he won’t eat, and I have only managed to get water in him because he’s too weak to fight back. I’m not even supposed to be in there…”

“You’re doing the right thing,” Ambrose assured Harvey. “Telling us where Nick is, trying to help him.”

“But, my family…” Harvey’s conflict was clear. “They want to kill him, kill all of you…”

“You aren’t like them,” Sabrina said gently. “You know that.” She stepped forward and put a comforting hand on his elbow. “We know that. Ambrose is right. You’re doing the right thing by coming here. We have to help Nick. He needs us.”

“He wanted to protect you,” Harvey told her. “The few times he’s been coherent, that’s all he has asked for – for me to protect you. He’s been pretty out of it most of today, but he’s been mumbling your name.” He paused for a moment. It was awkward to tell his ex what her new boyfriend was saying about her. “Saying you name and ‘sorry’ and ‘love you.’”

Sabrina’s grip on the fencepost tightened to keep herself upright.

“We have to get to him,” she said with steely determination.

“We need a plan,” Ambrose stated. “We can’t just show up…”

“Sabrina! Prudence! Ambrose!”

Everyone spun towards the woods. Emerging from them with pure panic on his features was none other than Melvin.

“Melvin?” Sabrina called out.

“What now?” Ambrose asked.

“Blackwood…” He stopped running and bent over, hands on his knees to catch his breath. “Judas… Religion… Poison…”

“What are you babbling about?” Prudence snapped. “Speak, Melvin.”

“Blackwood has gone mad,” Melvin said as he straightened up. “He got us all out of bed, called us down to the great hall. He started preaching about a new world order, the Church of Judas. Something about his newborn son and witches being at the feet of warlocks. He had some of us drink from a cup. It was poison, whatever it was. Over half the coven is lying on the ground dying. I didn’t take it… I was, um… Well, I was making out with Elsbeth in the back. She’s trying to help…”

“My sisters,” Prudence said with urgency. She looked to Ambrose. He looked dumbfounded.

“It’s happening,” he said. “Whatever Blackwood’s plans are, they are happening now that the baby is born. It will all happen. Tonight. Now.”

“What’s going on?” Theo asked Sabrina. “What’s he talking about?”

“I have to go… My sisters…” Prudence started towards the gate.

It was like the fog that had settled over Sabrina when she learned Nick was being held captive suddenly cleared. She saw what they needed to do. She took charge.

“Prudence, Ambrose, go to the Academy,” she directed. “Bring as many people back here as you can for Hilda to treat. Try to figure out what the Heaven Blackwood is up to and where he’s at now. Harvey, Theo, Roz, come inside with me. We need Hilda to tell us what to do for Nick, and we need to make a plan with Zelda on how to stop both Blackwood and the witch hunters.”

Everyone stood and looked at her for a moment. She stared back. What were they waiting for?

“Go!” she cried out.

Everyone moved at once except for Melvin and Harvey.

“What do I do?” Melvin asked. “How can I help?”

“Go with Prudence and Ambrose,” she decided. “You can help them. And thank you, Melvin, for coming here. You did the right thing. We stand a chance at helping the others because of you.” Melvin nodded, then ran to catch up with Ambrose and Prudence before they teleported away.

“Did they just…”

“Teleport?” Sabrina finished for Theo. She had no time for him to be marveled by magic. “Yes. Come inside. We need to act fast.” She started for the mortuary, but realized Harvey wasn’t with her. She turned back. He was still on the other side of the gate. “Harvey?”

“I can’t,” he reminded her with a sad note in his tone. “The protection spells, remember?”

Sabrina returned to him. She stopped just inside the gate where she was still protected by the Spellman mortuary.

“Try,” she encouraged. “Try to step through the gate.”

“Sabrina…” Harvey looked worried.

“If you truly don’t want to hurt me or my family, it will let you pass without incident.” She believed him, but it would test his loyalty all the same. “I believe you, Harvey. I believe you when you say you are here to help us, to help Nick. So try. Try to step through this gate.”

Harvey hesitated for a moment longer, but took a step forward, and then another. He passed through the gate without incident.

“See?” Sabrina asked. “I trust you – my family’s home literally trusts you.”

“I don’t want to hurt you or your family,” Harvey said anyway. He felt he needed to reassure her. “I even want to help Nick, despite not liking him very much.”

“Then let’s go help him,” Sabrina encouraged. She led the way through the mortuary and upstairs. She found Hilda and Zelda in Zelda’s bedroom. She pushed open the door without precedence. “Aunties, we have a problem.”

“Sabrina!” Zelda chided as the baby wailed. “We just got her to sleep!”

“Whose baby is that?” Roz asked.

“The less you know about that baby the better,” Sabrina stated. “The Kinkles have Nick. He has been shot and he is not doing well. They are holding him hostage to lure me to them. Because that wasn’t enough, Blackwood has enacted whatever his plan is and poisoned half of the coven. Ambrose and Prudence have gone to investigate and bring as many of them back here for Hilda to treat as they can.”

For a few moments, the only sound in the room was the baby’s wailing. Zelda and Hilda stared at the group of teenagers.

“Say that all again,” Zelda finally broke the silence.

Sabrina repeated her story, this time with a bit more detail.

“I’m going to go get Nick,” she informed her family. “You go deal with Blackwood.”

Sabrina made to leave the room. Zelda stopped her with magic.

“Not so fast,” she stated. “Sabrina, I cannot allow you to go off to a house full of witch hunters on your own.”

“But Nick is there! He’s hurt!”

“He’s in bad shape,” Harvey added. “I don’t know that he will make it until morning.”

“What took you so long to come?” Zelda questioned Harvey. “If you have had such a change of heart, why are you only just coming to Sabrina with this information when you family has had Nicholas since yesterday evening? Twenty-four hours plus have passed and you are only just now showing up here, well after dinner.”

“It’s harder to get away from my family than you would think,” Harvey answered. “My grandpa doesn’t want us near Nick’s room which makes things even more complicated. He says he’s the only one allowed in. I’m having to sneak in to check on him.”

“I’m going to get Nick,” Sabrina informed Zelda once more. “He is in this mess because of us. I won’t allow him to lose his life because of it.”

“We will help Nicholas,” Zelda assured her. “First, we must take down Blackwood. He cannot be allowed his freedom. Once he is contained, we will focus on the witch hunters.”

“Nick needs help now,” Sabrina insisted. “You heard Harvey. He might not make it another few hours!”

“I can give Harvey an antidote for him,” Hilda offered. “The bullet needs to come out though. Soon, by the sound of it. The antidote takes a while to work as it is, and with the bullet still in him, he is just going to get worse. An antidote will buy us some time.”

“I’ll take the antidote, but it’s going to be hard for me to get into his room,” Harvey said again. “My grandpa checks in on him on occasion to taunt him, make sure he’s still breathing, but that’s it. Like I said, he doesn’t want us around him. He says Nick is too important to the end game.”

“Which is us,” Sabrina supplied.

“I can try though,” he finished with a glance at Sabrina. “I will try.”

“I could do it,” Theo hedged. Everyone looked at him. “I’m sure there is a window or something in the room I could slip through?”

“There is a small one,” Harvey nodded.

“Well I’m not very big, am I?” Theo asked. “I can fit through it. You keep your family busy, Harvey, and I will take care of Nick. I’ll get in and get out.”

“I don’t know,” Harvey hedged. “It’s dangerous, Theo…”

“I don’t care,” Theo shook his head. “I’ve only met Nick a couple of times, but he seems cool and he clearly means a lot to Sabrina, therefore he means something to us too, right?”

“Right,” Roz nodded despite how nervous she looked.

“Theo, I can’t ask that of you,” Sabrina wavered.

“You’re not, are you?” Theo puffed out his chest. It felt good to feel needed when his friends could see the future, do magic, and had a family lineage of hunting down said magic. He only had a mere spirit guide. “I’m volunteering.”

It was done. Hilda passed the baby to Sabrina who held it awkwardly as she cried and quickly went about mixing up an antidote while explaining to Theo exactly what he needed to do.

“And then put this poultice on him, if you can,” she said, indicating a patch she had soaked with the antidote. “It will continue to seep antidote into his wound. It’s the best we can do for him until I him here. Tell him to be as still as he can. Conserve his energy.”

When Harvey and Theo left, Sabrina turned to Zelda.

“We need to get to the Academy,” she stated. She wasn’t going to wait around much longer. Downstairs, she could hear the faint sounds of more and more of her classmates being brought there.

“And I need to get downstairs,” Hilda echoed her thoughts.

“What can I do?” Roz asked. “I’m here, I can help…”

“Take the babe,” Zelda instructed. She had stopped crying by now.

“You can help me,” Hilda added. “I’ll need an extra set of hands. I’ll tell you what to do.”

“Thank you, Roz,” Sabrina said as she passed the infant to her friend. “You will be safe here.”

“You be safe,” Roz countered as she hoisted the baby to her shoulder. “I tried to use my cunning to see what I could, but it’s all shadows and shapes that don’t make sense. I don’t know how to control it yet. My Gran says that will come with time…”

“It’s okay,” Sabrina soothed. “You’re here. That’s all that matters.”

The friends hugged and then Sabrina and Zelda were rushing out of the house. Neither of them dared to stop to take in the chaos in the living room. If they did, if they saw the faces of those they went to school with or taught in classes, they would stay, and Blackwood would have more time for whatever he was plotting while Nick continued to get worse.

“Be on your toes, Sabrina,” Zelda coached her as they crossed the yard. “We have no idea what we are walking into.”

“We have to end Blackwood,” Sabrina stated. “Fast. Nick can’t wait much longer.”

As they teleported to the Academy, Sabrina felt like she was making a choice – her coven or Nick. One life or many.

Rushing up the Academy stairs in an effort to save her coven, Sabrina couldn’t help but feel guilty about her choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew. That was a lot. I didn't really want to leave you hanging there, but... I had to.
> 
> Nick is being held captive, but... he looks like he's got an ally in Harvey. Blackwood's games are in motion now. Let's see the Spellmans be the bad asses they are. But Blackwood... He's a decent warlock, too. 
> 
> Honestly though? My favorite part was Sabrina telling Zelda she doesn't get to lecture her for a long time to come. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! If you're in the United States or celebrate it - Happy Thanksgiving! If not - happy Thursday! :) Let me know what you thought of this one! Your comments are ❤️❤️❤️.


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It all comes down to this...

Harvey watched the window with trepidation. He had been relieved to find his grandfather, father, and uncles well into their whiskey. Normally the sight of them drunk would make him sick. Tonight, it was a blessing. The more they drank, the easier it was to slip past them. At least one uncle was already nearly passed out.

He tried not to think about what could happen to them when the Spellmans arrived. He had made his choice – his friends or his family. He wouldn’t go back now.

Theo’s face appeared through the window. Harvey rushed to it. He helped Theo pry it open.

“What are you doing in here?” Theo hissed. “I thought you were distracting your family.”

“They are rip roaring drunk,” Harvey reported. “They are sufficiently distracted, but I will keep a look out.” He took the antidote from Theo and helped him climb through the window. It was a tight fit, but he was able shimmy through. Together, they stood at Nick’s bedside and took him in.

“He really doesn’t look so good,” Theo commented. The warlock’s normally olive skin was devoid of color. A fine sheen of sweat covered him and his breathing was shallow. Theo wrapped his fingers around Nick’s wrist in search of his pulse. It was there, thready and slow. He could feel fever raging throughout Nick’s body. “Here goes nothing.”

Harvey hovered at the door, listening for any sign of his family approaching as Theo worked. Theo uncapped a small vial and filled the dropper as Hilda had instructed. He maneuvered it into Nick’s mouth and squeezed. It was a simple task. The warlock was too weak to protest. He repeated the motion two more times.

“How’s it going?” Harvey asked.

“The antidote is in him. I’m going to put the poultice over his wound now, but I might need some help rolling him on his side. He’s dead weight and these chains are heavy.”

Harvey didn’t hesitate to help. Together, they got Nick on his side. Nick let out a groan that was the first sign of life either of them had heard from him. Theo pushed up Nick’s shirt, noting it was filthy and damp with sweat. He cringed when he saw the bullet hole. It was both an angry red with a decaying black ring around the hole it made. He unbagged the strong smelling poultice and taped it over the wound. They carefully lowered Nick back to the bed.

“We did what we could,” Theo said.

“I hope it’s enough,” Harvey replied. Theo could sense Harvey’s guilt.

“I know this must be awful for you,” he offered. “Your family…”

“They aren’t my family,” Harvey shook his head. “I realized that the more I thought about what they want to do to the Spellmans. I have always felt differently than them. I have always felt like an outsider. Tommy was the only family I had, and he’s gone. My dad is an alcoholic, my grandfather is awful. I didn’t like him before I knew what he is. My uncles are no better. My friends – you, Roz, even Sabrina, despite everything – are my family. Sabrina doesn’t deserve to die just because she is a witch. Her and her family have only ever been kind to us.”

“We are here for you, Harvey,” Theo assured him. “Whatever you need, however this shakes out, we are here for you.” Harvey only nodded.

“Sabrina…”

Nick groaned from his bed. He weakly pulled at one of his shackles.

“Hey, Nick, you’re okay.” Theo went to him and perched at his bedside. He kept his voice low. “Sabrina is okay. She has a plan.”

“No,” Nick shook his head. “Can’t be here…”

“She’s going to get you out of here,” Theo kept talking. “Harvey told her and her family you were here…”

“They… Attack…”

“No.” Harvey appeared next to Theo. “I’m on your side, Scratch. I can’t hurt Sabrina.”

“She… Can’t… Come…”

“You’re weak,” Theo tried to calm him. “Hilda sent an antidote. It will help until they can treat you. She said you are to remain as still and as calm as you can.”

“Sabrina…” Nick tried.

“She will be here soon.”

Nick managed to open his eyes. He found Theo’s concerned obs. He could trust Theo. Theo would take his words back to Sabrina.

“Tell her… I love her… And… I’m… sorry…”

“You will tell her yourself,” Theo encouraged him. “Soon. Just hold on, okay?”

“Tell… Her…”

He gave in to the darkness pulling to bring him back under and closed his eyes once more. Theo and Harvey exchanged a nervous look. Theo’s shaking hand checked for a pulse once more.

“He’s still here,” he shared.

“He won’t be much longer,” Harvey worried. “Sabrina needs to get here. Fast.”

* * *

Sabrina and Zelda rushed up the stairs of the Academy. Zelda used magic to burst through the door. The force of her magic reverberated around them.

They stopped in their tracks.

The statue of Lucifer that stood large and proud in the entry was gone. In its place was a statue of Blackwood. Around it, the entry was in ruins. The school was quiet. Too quiet. Zelda and Sabrina exchanged a concerned look.

“Stay alert,” Zelda ordered in a hushed tone. Together, they crept forward, stepping over the rubble. A few bodies, all in the black of the Judas Boys, littered the area. They ignored them and kept moving. They stopped suddenly once more when they reached the Great Hall.

“Oh my Satan,” Sabrina breathed.

Bodies littered the room. Her eyes watered as she took in several of her classmates, none of which deserved to have their lives cut short this way, all so Blackwood could fulfill some plot to make himself a deity. A grim Prudence and Ambrose approached.

“How many are left?” Zelda asked in a breathy voice.

“We got a dozen or so to Hilda in time,” Ambrose shared. “Plus a handful that managed to not drink the poison one way or another. They are all at the mortuary with Hilda and Roz.”

“Your sisters?” Sabrina asked Prudence.

“We got to them in time,” she nodded. She looked heartbroken.

“Blackwood?” Zelda inquired.

“We had a skirmish in the entry,” Ambrose revealed. “Prudence and I managed to take out a few of his men, but he vanished before we could get to him.”

“What are the odds he’s headed for the Kinkle cottage?” Sabrina wondered.

“I would say near a hundred percent,” Prudence offered. “He said something to the effect of ‘I’ll have one more chance at the Spellmans,’ before he teleported away.” She looked to Zelda. “He has the baby. He’s calling him Judas. I think he does mean to kill him.”

“We have to go to the cabin,” Zelda decided. “I wish there were more than the four of us, but I can’t take Hilda away from the rest of the coven.”

“Melvin and a few others are fine,” Ambrose suggested. “Perhaps not the most talented we have, but they will help.”

“Fetch them,” Zelda approved. “Bring them to the woods near the Kinkle’s cabin. Meet the three of us there.” Ambrose left without delay. “Sabrina, Prudence, we will need to harness everything we have. Blackwood is many things, but there is no denying his strength as a warlock, nor his willingness to practice magics most won’t touch. We don’t know what we might face.”

“If we’re going to the cabin, I’m going in to get Nick,” Sabrina stated. “I won’t risk him in this.”

“I’m afraid Nicholas…”

“I won’t risk him,” Sabrina cut her aunt off with a tone that dared Zelda to deny her. “I can get him to safety. Let me.”

Zelda took in the determined set to her niece’s jaw. She reminded her of – her.

“Fine,” she agreed. “But you will be quick.”

“Let’s go then.”

The three of them exited the Academy. They relied on Sabrina’s knowledge of the Kinkles to teleport them near the cabin. They arrived in the woods behind it without a word. Sabrina spotted a small open window. Her gut told her that was Nick’s room. Without a backwards glance for Zelda and Prudence, she slipped through the yard.

It was a bit high for her, but she was determined. She jumped and managed to hook her fingers over the seal. She started to climb.

Harvey appeared with a lamp held over his head, ready to strike. His eyes widened when he saw her.

“Sabrina! What are you doing here?”

“Long story,” she said as she heaved herself through the window. Harvey put the lamp aside as Theo scrambled to the window. Together, they helped her into the room. She went straight for Nick. “How is he?”

“Not good,” Theo answered. He watched as Sabrina gently ran her fingertips along Nick’s cheek. The sound of Harvey’s family growing ever rowdier in the living room echoed back to them. “I did everything Hilda asked. He came around for a minute or two. He wanted us to tell you he loves you – and that he’s sorry. I told him he could tell you himself.”

“Nick?” Sabrina tried. Seeing him like this was worse than any image she had managed to conjure up before she was at his side. “I’m here. You’re safe.” She ran her thumb over his lips. They were bone dry. The faintest puff of air expelled from him. “Nick, it’s me.” She couldn’t stop herself from leaning forward to press a soft kiss to his forehead. He was hot with fever. Too hot. “I need to cut the steel,” she said to Harvey and Theo. “And then figure out how to get him out of here.”

“Can you do that?” Harvey asked. “Grandpa said the steel would keep him from doing magic.”

“I think I can,” she nodded. “Be the lookout?” Harvey assumed his position. Theo looked on curiously. Sabrina held up her hands and hoped to Hell her spell worked. Relief flooded her as the steel began to melt away.

“What are you doing?” Theo sounded awestruck.

Sabrina didn’t answer. Her full attention was on getting Nick out of that room. When he was free of the steel, melted by a heat sent straight from Hell, she tried again to rouse him. “Nick? Please. Open your eyes for me.” She stroked his cheek. “Please, Nick.”

So slowly she thought time might well be standing still, Nick blinked his eyes open. His pupils were dilated and unfocused. The whites of his eyes had yellowed. Still, he managed the faintest of smiles.

“Sabrina.”

“I’m here,” she confirmed. “I need to get you out of here. Blackwood is around here somewhere. We are going to end this, but I need to get you out of here first.” She looked around. She and Theo could fit through the window, but Nick’s more solid build and Harvey’s longer, lengthier body would not. “Harvey, is there a back door?”

“Just down the hall,” he confirmed. “Everyone is drinking in the front room. You might be able to get out unnoticed.”

“I have to try,” she decided. She considered Nick, wondering if she should try to get him to his feet or attempt to levitate him out the door. “It’s the only way.”

“Sabrina…”

Seeing her bolstered him. He struggled up to his elbows, panting for breath and barely able to support his weight.

“Careful,” she advised. “You’re weak, Nick. Hurt. Don’t try to push yourself.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” he told her.

“I’m exactly where I need to be,” she informed him. “We need to get you out of here. Blackwood is coming. The babies were born, and he went rogue, just like you and Ambrose thought he would.” Her eyes watered. “He poisoned the coven, Nick. Ambrose and Prudence saved as many as they could. Hilda is taking care of them at the mortuary.”

“He did… What?” Nick tried to process what Sabrina had told him, but the fog in his head was so thick he couldn’t. He slipped a bit as his strength started to give. Still, he fought to stay present. “You have to go, Sabrina. They will kill you…”

“I’m leaving,” she nodded. “But you are coming with me, Nick. Zelda and Prudence are outside. Ambrose is coming with a few others. We are going to end this tonight, but I have to get you to safety first.”

Nick managed to push himself upright with Sabrina’s help. She winced as she watched him react to the pain that coursed through him. He grit his teeth and hissed. He needed Hilda, now.

“What’s the plan?” he asked when the worst of it had passed.

“We’re going to sneak out of the back door,” she told him.

“It’s all clear right now,” Harvey confirmed.

“We will help you out of here,” Theo added. Nick seemed to just notice they were there. He didn’t comment on their presence.

“Once we are under the cover of the woods, I’m going to teleport you back to the mortuary where Hilda can take care of you…”

“No,” Nick cut her off. “I’ll stay here, help.”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “You’re too weak, Nick. There is a bullet laced with holy water in you. Theo gave you an antidote, but until that bullet comes out…”

“I’m not leaving you,” Nick said. It was the strongest he had sounded in the last few minutes. “I can help.”

Sabrina considered him. In a perfect world, regardless of their personal issues, he was the one she wanted by her side for this. He was a powerful warlock, but it went deeper than his ability to do magic. He was clever, could think fast on his feet. In his current state, she wasn’t sure he could so much as stand under his own power. She opened her mouth to tell him as much, but her eyes fell on the amulet he still wore around his neck. The idea formed quickly. She pulled her own amulet out of her shirt – she hadn’t been able to take it off.

“Hold this,” she directed Nick. She took his hand and placed it around her amulet. She reached for his.

“What are you…”

Sabrina leaned her forehead against his, closed her eyes, and began to chant. Nick’s eyes widened as he realized what she was doing.

“Sabrina… No…” Her hand closed over his to keep him from dropping her amulet. He was too weak to pull away. He felt her magic fill his body, the way his strength returned, at least for the moment. He took a full breath for what felt like the first time in ages. He missed her when she pulled away.

“What was that?” Theo asked, watching with wide eyes as Nick seemed to essentially come back to life. Harvey wore a similar look of awe from his spot in the doorway.

“I channeled some of my power into him,” Sabrina answred. “I used our amulets. It won’t last long, but it should be enough to keep him on his feet for a bit.”

“You shouldn’t have.” Nick still sounded weak, but there was a marked difference from mere moments earlier. “You weakened yourself, Sabrina.”

“I have plenty of power to go around,” she dismissed his worries. “Harvey? Is the coast still clear?” Harvey stepped into the hall to double check. Sabrina gave her attention back to Nick. “Think you can stand?” Nick nodded. He tried to push to his feet, but the movement proved more than he was ready for.

“Careful,” Theo said as he moved to help Sabrina steady Nick. Nick sat on the edge of the bed and breathed deep. His vision swam. He screwed his eyes shut for a moment and drew on his reserves.

“Okay,” he breathed as he opened his eyes. “I’m ready.”

Sabrina slipped her arm around him. Theo stood at the ready on his other side in case Nick stumbled. He leaned heavily on Sabrina, but he felt stronger. Harvey re-appeared.

“All clear,” he reported. “They are roaring drunk, the whole lot of them. I don’t think they could aim accurately if they tried. You should be able to get out of here safely.”

“Who knows what waits outside,” Nick grumbled as his mind started to click once more.

“Let’s just focus on getting outside first,” Sabrina encouraged. Nick nodded his agreement. Together, they edged out of the room and quietly down the short hall, Harvey bringing up the rear to ensure they made it out of the house undetected. They didn’t speak again until they were under the cover of the woods. Ambrose had returned with a mere handful of witches and warlocks.

“Nicholas,” Zelda greeted. Her eye scrutinized him.

“Are you okay?” Prudence asked him.

“I’ve been better,” Nick said evenly. It was clear he was still angry at Prudence.

“You look better than I expected,” Zelda countered.

“Thanks to Sabrina,” Nick said.

“Let me see you wound.” Sabrina moved behind him and lifted his shirt before he had a chance to protest. She saw it wasn’t just a bullet that had done damage. His back was covered in scratches and bruises. She shuddered as she realized he had likely been dragged through the woods like a fallen animal. Her fingers lightly touched the poultice. He hissed as her touch, light as a feather, caused pain to shoot through him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered as her eyes watered. He turned to her.

“For what?” He didn’t think she had anything to apologize for. He, however, had a mountain of things, some of which she didn’t even know about. Sabrina only shrugged, too overcome with seeing how hurt he truly was to put words to her feelings. He took a chance and caught her fingers with his. It was a light touch, but he needed to feel her. “I’m the one that’s sorry.”

A loaded silence hung between them. Sabrina’s feelings were conflicted. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and be thankful he was alive, tell him how she felt about him. Except her feelings about him were all over the place. She knew she loved him before the bet was revealed. She thought she still did. But he had broken her heart and she wasn’t sure she could trust him now. And yet, she still trusted him with her life.

“I’m afraid the pair of you will have to sort out your teenage angst later,” Zelda informed them. “We don’t have much time.”

“What’s the plan?” Sabrina asked, bringing her attention back to the situation at hand. Zelda was right – she and Nick’s issues would have to wait. To her surprise, Zelda looked to Harvey.

“Mr. Kinkle, I’m going to give you the opportunity to leave while you still can. Mr. Putnam, too. Things will escalate rapidly and while it appears you allegiances have changed, that is your family in there.”

“I’ll stay,” Harvey determined.

“Are you sure?” Sabrina asked him. “We can’t make any promises…”

“I know,” Harvey nodded. “I lost my family when Tommy died.” Sabrina cringed but there was no malice in his voice. “Those people in there, even my dad, aren’t my family. Not really.” Theo put a hand on Harvey’s shoulder in support. Sabrina stepped forward and wrapped him in a hug. Nick let the wave of jealousy at seeing Sabrina in Harvey’s arms go as quickly as it came. Now wasn’t the time and Harvey had essentially saved his life. “I’m here. I’ll do what I can to help.”

“Me too,” Theo added.

“So do we just stand here and wait for Blackwood or…?” Sabrina wondered.

“We will be proactive,” Zelda determined. She braced herself. “We will start with the witch hunters.” She watched Harvey for his reaction. He only nodded once. “We shall smoke them out. Everyone? Prepare yourselves.”

Sabrina looked to Nick while the others moved to create a line. He was far too pale and a bit shaky on his feet.

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” she questioned. “You’re hurt, Nick…”

“I’m fine,” he insisted. “I’m not backing out of this now.” He looked her in the eye. “Not when I’m this far in.”

They both knew he didn’t just mean with Blackwood and the witch hunters.

“How did you get here?” she asked. “How did the Kinkles catch you?”

“Blackwood set me up,” Nick answered. He would explain more later, if he had the chance. He nodded to the others. “We should join them.”

“Promise me you will teleport back to the mortuary if you start to fade?” she asked.

“You know I can’t,” Nick shook his head. Sabrina sighed. She knew he wouldn’t agree. She wouldn’t agree if the roles were reversed. He caught her chin with his fingers and tilted it up so she had to look at him. “I know you’re mad at me. I don’t blame you for that. But I love you, Sabrina.” He swallowed hard as reality settled in. He had a bullet laced with holy water in him and they were about to face witch hunters and a vengeful Blackwood. Odds weren’t in his favor. “I just wanted to say that one more time.”

He released her and stepped away to join the group before she could reply. She blew out a shuddering breath as his words landed around her. They needed to talk – really talk – but they couldn’t do that now, not when they were in so much danger. So instead, she took her place beside him and made it her personally mission to make sure he made it through this.

“Ready?” Zelda asked the group. She didn’t wait for a response. “Let’s begin.”

All eyes were on her as she raised her hands. No words passed her lips. She simply set the roof of the cabin on fire. Sabrina looked at Harvey, searching his features for any sign of what he was thinking. He looked stoic.

A few minutes passed. They stood, waiting. The first shouts met their ears. They were behind the cabin but listened as the front door was thrown open and men stumbled out.

“He’s gone!” someone cried out from the house.

“What?”

There was no mistaking the shout of Harvey’s grandfather.

“He’s gone!” said the other voice. “The warlock!”

Sabrina moved a hair closer to Nick, ready to protect him if needed. She vaguely considered teleporting him back to the mortuary herself and binding him there, but he wouldn’t stand for it and given how much he knew about binding, would probably break out of it and come right back anyway.

The back door was still open from their departure. Mr. Kinkle and another man stumbled out of it, coughing from the smoke. Both Sabrina and Nick tensed and prepared to go forward, but they reached out their hands to stop one another. They exchanged a glance, but their attention was quickly pulled back to Mr. Kinkle and the uncle.

“How the hell did that happen?” the uncle asked. He stumbled a few steps as he took in fire that was rapidly burning through the house.

“Witches,” Mr. Kinkle said. Something in him went on alert. “There are witches here. I can feel them!” He spun and his eyes landed on Zelda. “Aha! Fools! You walk right into a witch hunter’s layer!”

“You are the fool,” Zelda informed him. “You dare to make a deal with Faustus Blackwood, to attempt to harm my family, my coven? Utterly foolish.” She took the hands of Sabrina on her left and Ambrose on her right. Sabrina reached for Nick’s hand, Ambrose’s for Prudence’s. The motion was repeated until all of them had linked hands.

“Boys!” Mr. Kinkle boomed. “Backyard!” His eyes scanned the group, counting Spellmans. “We are missing the one, but Blackwood will be happy all the same.” His eyes fell on Nick. “How’d you get out, boy? We had you next to dead. But I suppose you served your purpose.” The rest of the Kinkle clan, including Harvey’s father, stumbled into the backyard. “You got the girl and her family here.”

“I helped him.”

Harvey stepped out of the shadows. Mr. Kinkle’s eyes grew big.

“You betrayed us!”

“The Spellmans are good people,” he said. “They don’t deserve this.”

“The Spellmans – and their friends – are witches and warlocks! They deserve to die!”

“No, they don’t,” Harvey shook his head. His eyes found his father. “Dad, remember when Mom died and Hilda Spellman sent over all of those casseroles and cakes? The neighbors sent food, too, but we didn’t touch it because Ms. Spellman’s was so good. It was the only thing we could stomach. And then, after Tommy died, the Spellmans did so much…”

“The Spellmans killed my boy!” Harvey’s father broke in. “They are the reason Tommy is dead!”

“Sabrina tried to save him,” Harvey pushed back. “Things didn’t go the way she meant them to, but I have had time to think – Tommy is better off dead. He didn’t want this – he didn’t want Greendale or the mines. He gave up a football scholarship to stay here, take care of me when you couldn’t or rather, wouldn’t. He would have died in those mines one way or another. His soul already had.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” his father tried.

“You don’t know what you’re doing,” Harvey countered. “This isn’t you, Dad. You have known the Spellmans for years and you have never wanted to hurt them before.”

“Don’t listen to him, son,” Mr. Kinkle spoke up. “He’s a traitor.”

“I’m choosing the right side,” Harvey stood firm. “I’m choosing good, decent people. This is your chance to do that, too.”

“I won’t wait much longer, Mr. Kinkle,” Zelda said to Harvey. “I have a High Priest to finish off, a coven that needs tending to, and Nicholas desperately needs medical attention.”

Sabrina glanced at Nick to check on him. He was still pale, still looked unsteady on his feet. She thought again about sending him home, but her attention was pulled back to the exchange between Harvey and his family.

“Get your weapons, boys,” Mr. Kinkle ordered. “Let’s get ourselves a nice payday.”

“We… Our weapons… They’re in there…” One of the uncles pointed to the house that was now fully in engulfed. The heat from it expanded around them.

“Oh for Heaven’s sake!” Mr. Kinkle pulled a pistol from inside his jacket and aimed haphazardly at Sabrina. He fired. Nick pulled her into him and together, they hit the ground hard. Nick let out a cry of pain, but his grip tightened around Sabrina and he rolled them over, him on top of her to protect her. The bullet whistled through the woods.

“Sabrina!” Harvey cried out. Still, he didn’t run to her. Nick had her – she was safe.

“Enough of this!” Zelda declared She began her spell. Ambrose and Prudence quickly joined her.

“You okay?” Nick asked Sabrina.

“I’m fine.” She looked up at him. Even with some of her power channeled into him, he was weak. Too weak. “You’re not though. Please, Nick, let me teleport you to Hilda…”

“No,” he shook his head. “Not until this is over and you’re safe.”

She didn’t bother to argue. She got to her feet and helped Nick to his. They rejoined the others.

“Sabrina!” Harvey called out again. “Are you okay?”

“I’m okay,” she nodded. She caught Nick’s hand in hers and the pair joined in on the chanting. They watched as ropes bound the Kinkle clan into a tight huddle. Sabrina dropped hands and stepped forward.

“Sabrina…” Nick called after her. She ignored him. She lifted her own hands and began another chant. This one caused a ring of fire to circle around them, ensuring they couldn’t get out.

“This is more than you deserve,” Zelda called out. “I would quite like to end you all – and I could with one spell. Consider this a show of mercy as a thank you to young Harvey who chose the right side. We will determine what to do with you later.”

“Fools, all of you.” Blackwood appeared out of nowhere. His Judas Boys popped in around them. One of them held the baby boy. “You obviously will not be receiving your payout, Kinkle.” Harvey’s grandfather struggled against his bindings and begged for release. Blackwood muted him with a lazy wave of his hand. “Now, to finally rid the world of the Spellman lineage.” Blackwood’s smirk was cruel. “This has been my greatest dream for centuries, but especially since that one,” he pointed to Sabrina, “came along.”

“I said all along you were up to no good,” Sabrina stated.

“You were always meddling,” he shot back. “I warned you it would end badly for you.” He sent a spell at her. She yelped as it shocked her. Nick pulled her back to the line. “And you, Nicholas.” Blackwood shook his head in dismay. “You had so much potential and yet you chose to align yourself with these people.”

“I chose wisely,” Nick informed him. “You’re the fool, Blackwood. You have no idea just what was happening right under your nose.”

Blackwood shook his head.

“Just like your father,” he said. “Pompous with his nose stuck in all the wrong places. I had the witch hunters spare you back then. You were just a kid and I thought you could be saved. But looking back, that was foolish. I should have ended you when I had the chance. End the Scratch line while I was at it.”

“You really should have,” Nick agreed. “You are going to wish you did.”

“The only life coming to an end today is yours,” Zelda spoke up. “You poisoned your own coven, denounced the Dark Lord. You can’t be allowed to continue to exist.”

“You killed my parents, didn’t you?” Sabrina spoke up. “If you killed Nick’s parents, you surely killed mine.”

“Of course I did,” Blackwood scoffed. “No use in denying it in your final moments. Edward was going to ruin everything.”

“I knew it.” Sabrina shook with rage. “I have always known it.” She stepped forward again, not sure what she was going to do, but eager to rip him limb from limb. It was Zelda who stopped her this time.

“Together,” she said loud enough for just Sabrina to hear. “I want my revenge as well.”

“Let’s get on with it then,” Sabrina grumbled.

“Yes, let’s get on with it,” Blackwood echoed. “Boys? If you please.”

The Judas Boys aimed their spells.

“No one hurts that baby!” Zelda cried out as the battle began. She singlehandedly took down two Judas Boys.

“Harvey!” Sabrina called out. “Theo!” She sent a shield charm around them. “Stay put!” She ducked a spell that came for her and fired her own back in turn. She hit the Boy square in the chest. She spun and looked for Nick. He was weak, but he was still the better warlock as he easily ended another Judas Boy. Around her, the Judas Boys fell like dominoes. They had always been weaker warlocks and while they managed the occasional hit with their spells, they couldn’t stand up to them. Even Melvin in his rage at what Blackwood had done to his friends managed to wipe out one.

The last one standing held the baby. He looked terrified as the Spellmans, Nick, Prudence, and the others all turned out

“Give him to me.” Blackwood didn’t wait for the baby to be passed to him. He summoned the infant, catching him haphazardly. He tucked him under one arm like a sack of potatoes.

“You are treating that infant entirely too rough for someone who wanted a male heir so badly,” Zelda informed him.

“He is my son, he will be fine,” Blackwood stated. “You said it yourself – he is strong. He ate his own brother! The same cannot be said for you lot, however.”

With a loud blast, they were all thrown backwards. Sabrina grunted as she hit the ground, but she was quick to scramble back to her feet. Ambrose was already up and both Zelda and Prudence were getting to their feet. Nick, however, was much slower to rise. She went to him.

“Nick, you should…”

“I’m not leaving,” he said with gritty determination. He used a tree to help him stand. “I have been waiting for this.” Sabrina frowned. She picked up on something in his tone that told her whatever his issues were with Blackwood went deeper than the last few weeks. “Let’s finish this.”

Zelda joined them. Ambrose and Prudence worked to hold a shield around their group as Blackwood laughed. The Kinkles called out to Blackwood for help, but Blackwood ignored them.

“It’s admirable, how hard you all are trying,” he called out. “But you cannot defeat me!”

“What do we do?” Sabrina asked Zelda.

“I would like to simply kill him, but we can’t risk the babe,” Zelda said.

“Let’s not kill him,” Nick shook his head. “Not yet. Not before he answers for what’s he’s done. Zelda, do you think you can summon the baby to you?”

“I can try,” Zelda nodded. “He will make it difficult.”

“You do that, I’ll bind him.”

“With what spell?” Zelda questioned. Nick took a deep breath. It hurt to breathe that deep.

“One I read somewhere.”

Zelda narrowed her eyes at his haphazard answer.

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

Nick didn’t back down from her gaze.

“I have to be.”

Zelda made a choice in the moment to trust the warlock before her. She knew of the bet, but that was child’s play as far as she was concerned. This was much bigger than a silly mistake between teenagers. Nicholas wanted Blackwood gone as much as she did. And, she thought, despite their issues, he wouldn’t risk Sabrina. She had nothing to lose by trusting him.

“Sabrina, you will help me summon the babe,” she determined. “Prudence, you too. Ambrose, you work with the others to provide Nicholas protection.”

“On it,” Ambrose promised.

“Nick, you’re not strong enough,” Sabrina tried. “At least let me help you.”

“You need to help Zelda…”

“Prudence is enough of a witch to help her,” Sabrina argued. “Please, Nick, let me help you.”

Nick considered her. She was right. He was weak. But with her by his side, drawing off of one another, they would be next to unstoppable. He extended his hand to her. She took it.

“I have never done this spell before,” he warned her. “But listen to what I’m saying and join in.”

“Let’s do it.” Sabrina squeezed his hand without thinking. He returned the squeeze, then quickly checked on Theo and Harvey. They were cowered out of the way. He sent another shield spell around them, just in case. Sabrina watched it land. “Thank you,” she told him.

“I owe them,” he said. “Now, we take down Blackwood.” He tugged her forward.

“Ah, the dynamic duo,” Blackwood said as he took them in. “I suppose the two of you think you are a match for me.”

“Damned right we are,” Sabrina stated. “You have already taken too much from us, Blackwood. We won’t allow you to take our lives as well.”

Nick started to chant. Blackwood threw a spell at them. Sabrina deflected it. Nick never let up his chant. The baby in Blackwood’s arms started to pull towards Zelda and Prudence. Blackwood grabbed for the infant. Sabrina tried to listen to Nick’s words, to pick up the cadence.

“No!” Blackwood roared as his hand closed around the infant’s leg. He pulled the baby back into his arms.

“My brother will not come to harm at your hand,” Prudence threatened.

“Split up,” Ambrose demanded to the group he led. “Half of you protect Zelda and Prudence. The rest of you help me protect Nicholas and Sabrina!” He moved towards them. “Blackwood can’t fight on two fronts,” he said to Nick and Sabrina. “He can’t focus on the pair of you. That baby is integral to his plans. If Zelda and Prudence get the infant, with his Judas Boys dead, it’s over for him. We have to attack from both sides.”

Sabrina only nodded. Nick didn’t stop chanting. She listened one more time through before she joined in. He spared a quick glance at her to give her an encouraging nod. His grip on her hand tightened.

The ground around Blackwood began to turn a cloudy white.

“Zelda needs to get that baby fast,” Nick breathed before going right back into the chant. Sabrina looked to Ambrose. He nodded and moved to join Zelda in her efforts as the white grew around Blackwood.

“What’s this?” He looked around him as the clouds started to form a solid pillar. “No!” His roar sounded through the woods. He attempted a spell to free the witch hunters, but it was at the cost of taking his eyes off of Zelda. The baby zoomed through the air. Prudence caught him easily. The scream of rage from Blackwood reverberated throughout the forest.

“It’s over, Faustus,” Zelda stated as the column of smoke rose to his chin. “You have lost. I have been waiting and working for this moment for a very long time.”

The column of smoke completely engulfed Blackwood, trapping him. Nick stopped chanting and bent over, hands on his knees to catch his breath. Sabrina was there.

“Nick?”

“I’m fine.” It was a lie. He was barely standing under his own power and fading fast. “What about you?”

“I wasn’t shot by witch hunters,” Sabrina reminded him.

“Mr. Scratch?” Zelda interrupted. “Care to explain this spell?”

“I found it in one of Edward Spellman’s journals,” Nick told them as the others, including Theo and Harvey, joined around them. “He can’t get out of the bindings. I know you want to see him dead – I think we all do – but he can face what he has done now and then be punished appropriately.”

“I don’t know that I like that plan,” Prudence stated, glaring daggers at her biological father. “I would quite like the satisfaction of being the one that pulls the metaphorical trigger.”

“Prudence does raise a fair point,” Zelda said. “What shall we do with Blackwood now? Not to mention the witch hunters?”

“I know who will deal with them.”

Nick took a couple of steps forward. He stumbled and caught himself on a tree.

“Nick, you have done enough,” Sabrina tried. “More than enough…”

“I’m fine,” he insisted.

He closed his eyes and took a breath. His lungs burned. Sweat dripped from his forehead. He saw the signs. With the bullet still in him, antidote or not, he didn’t have long. He needed to finish what he started. He made his summons.

Zelda gasped.

“Your holiness!” she bowed deeply. The others followed. Sabrina, however, stood and stared in shock.

“The Antipope?” she asked.

“You know your council members,” the Antipope nodded. He turned to face Nick. “Well done, Nicholas.”

Sabrina’s eyes bulged. She wasn’t the only one who turned their eyes to Nick. The entire group looked to him, all with the same question – how had Nicholas Scratch summoned the Antipope? And why?

“He’s all yours,” Nick managed. His vision swam. “So are the witch hunters.” He stumbled again. Sabrina slid an arm around his waist to steady him.

“You did well,” the Antipope nodded at him. “My sister would be proud.”

“I did this for my mother,” Nick replied. “My father, too.” He swayed. Sabrina tightened her grip around his waist.

“Nick?”

He was flush, peppered in sweat.

“I’m fine,” he said yet again. He leaned heavily on Sabrina.

“Your holiness, forgive me, but why are you here?” Zelda asked.

“You aren’t the only one who has suspected Faustus Blackwood of ill doing for a long time.” Blackwood beat against the cloud holding him in place, but no sound emerged from him. The Kinkles, too, cried out, but no one, not even Harvey, paid them any mind. “Nicholas has been imperative in finally bringing him down – as were you and your family. I will pay you a visit to explain more soon. First, I must bring this lot to the Unholy Land for sentencing.” He looked to Nick with a note of concern, then turned back to Zelda. “For now, go take care of what remains of the Church of Night. And ensure my nephew gets the care he desperately needs.”

“Nephew?” Sabrina asked, looking between Nick and the Antipope. All thoughts of questioning the revelation fled, however. Nick’s pupils were blown, his lips pale. “Okay, no more resisting or saying you’re fine, Scratch. You need Hilda, now.”

Again, Nick swayed. Sabrina tightened her hold on him. She supported most of his weight now.

“I love you.” The words came out slurred. “I love you, Sabrina.”

His knees buckled.

“Nick!”

He hit the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHEW. Writing this update was a doozy. Way to come in clutch Theo and Harvey. And the mystery man was... the Antipope! More in the next update on how he played into all of this. I think one person may have guessed it a while back, but then said "nah." No devil in this story. :) We need to get Nick back to Hilda now though. 
> 
> I hope you had a great Thanksgiving if you're in the States! I am so grateful for you all. <3 Let me know what you thought of this one!


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kind of loved all the surprised reactions at the mystery man being the Antipope. Made my day, especially when I'm SLAMMED with school work and moving. Now, we find out how the Antipope played into it.

Sabrina adjusted the blankets around Nick. She studied her work and adjusted them again. Satisfied, she moved on to his pillows. She fluffed them, careful not to jostle him too much. She smoothed down his unruly curls and brushed her fingers over his cheek. He looked content in his sleep. She could only hope he was healing as he slumbered.

“’Brina?”

She looked over her shoulder and smiled softly.

“Hey Roz.”

“How is he?” she asked as she stepped into the room.

“He’s improving,” Sabrina reported with a grateful smile. “Hilda got the bullet out and has been dosing him with an antidote every hour on the hour. He’s due for another dose soon. Hopefully he will wake up in the next day or so.”

“And how are you?” Roz continued.

“I’m okay,” Sabrina nodded. “Nick is going to be okay, my family is safe, my friends are safe.” Still, she looked sad. “So many of my coven members are gone though. We can’t bring them back, but at least Blackwood will pay.” She ran a hand through Nick’s hair. “Thanks in large part to Nick.” Roz watched her best friend’s gentle touch and smiled slightly at the gentle gesture. “What about Theo and Harvey? How are they?”

“Theo is fine. He can’t stop talking about the big adventure you guys went on.” That made Sabrina chuckle a bit. Theo was so enthusiastic, so supportive and interested. It made her happy to know he was on her side. “Harvey is – okay enough. He’s wrestling with his feelings about all of this, but he is steadfast in his belief that he did the right thing.”

“Today is his birthday,” Sabrina mentioned.

“It is,” Roz nodded. “He said he doesn’t feel any different, which I suppose is a good thing.”

“And his father?”

“He’s back home. Thanks to your aunt.”

Zelda had vouched for Harvey’s father. The man had a change of heart thanks to Harvey and Zelda’s testimony had spared his life. He was now under house arrest for a very long time. Sabrina wasn’t entirely clear on the details – she didn’t want to be – but she knew if Harvey’s father left his property, that would be the last thing he ever did.

“And you?” Sabrina continued her questioning.

“I’m good,” Roz confirmed with a faint smile. Sabrina could tell she meant it. “I decided I’m going to let Hilda help me with the blindness.”

Sabrina’s jaw dropped.

“You are?”

“Watching her treat your coven, she was so gentle, so kind. She told me she could give me a potion that would help me keep my eyesight. I know it’s not the same as allowing you to break the curse, and maybe someday I will want that, but for now, I kind of want to keep the visions, learn how to use them.” Her smile grew. “If you keep getting yourself into trouble, they might prove helpful.”

Sabrina laughed at that.

“I’m glad you’re going to let Hilda help,” she nodded. “I think that’s a good compromise.”

“A compromise?” Roz questioned.

“Well, if I had it my way, you would immediately let me find a way to break the curse, no questions asked. Your allowing Hilda to treat you is the best I can do.”

“A compromise then,” Roz agreed with a grin. She crossed her arms and looked around. “It’s wild, being here.”

“Here as in the Academy?” Sabrina clarified.

“There is a statue of the devil in your entry way,” Roz stated. “For a girl raised by a pastor, it was beyond wild to see. Never mind the fact that I’m in a school where witches and warlocks are taught how to be witches and warlocks.”

“The statue is back?” Sabrina wondered. “Blackwood had replaced it with a statue of himself.”

“You haven’t left Nick’s side, have you?” Roz questioned.

“I have. I’ve been helping Hilda with the others.”

Once everyone was stable, Hilda had transported them back to the Academy and turned the boys’ dormitory – the larger and more well-appointed of the dormitories under Blackwood’s rule despite there being far more witches – into an infirmary of sorts. Once Nick had been stabilized, Sabrina had insisted he be brought to his own bedroom to recover.

“Sabrina…”

“I slept here last night,” she admitted. “I did go home long enough to shower and change earlier, but I’m the reason the Kinkles went after Nick. I want to be here when he wakes up.”

“And then what happens?” Roz pressed. “Things weren’t exactly great between the two of you before all of this happened.” Sabrina smoothed Nick’s comforter down again.

“Once he’s awake and a little more stable, I’m going to do what everyone has suggested. I’m going to talk to him. Hear his side of things.”

“You care about him,” Roz stated.

“Of course I care about him,” Sabrina nodded. She blinked away tears. Her emotions were all over the place when it came to Nick. One minute she was livid with him for the mountain of lies he had told, the next she wanted to cling to him and forget it all. “He said ‘I love you’ several times before he collapsed. Every time he said it, I knew he meant it. I could feel it.” She wiped away an escaped tear. “Every time he said it, I knew it was because he thought it would be his last chance, that he wanted to make sure I heard those words from him before he died.”

“You love him too.” It was as clear to Roz as the early spring day outside.

“I do,” Sabrina confirmed. “I don’t know what that looks like moving forward, but I do.”

“Let him wake up first,” Roz advised. “Hear him out, and then take it from there.”

“Always one with the sage wisdom,” Sabrina observed. Her hand found Nick’s. She let it rest over his. “Thank you, Roz. For everything. Hilda said you were incredible last night.”

“I did what I could,” Roz shrugged modestly. “Hilda is kind of a rockstar though.”

“She really is,” Sabrina agreed. She had witnessed Hilda in action the night before when she teleported Nick back. She herself had been a mess, screaming for help, begging Hilda to save him. Hilda had never wavered. She had remained calm and collected and knew just what to do. She now truly understood what Hilda had meant about being the one at home to clean them up after battle or even just a bad day.

“I’m going to get going,” Roz said after a beat. “I told Harvey and Theo I would be by. We’re having cake and ice cream for Harvey this evening. Nothing huge, just thought it would be nice to mark the occasion and maybe take his mind off of things. You should come…”

Sabrina was already shaking her head.

“I don’t want to leave Nick. But I also don’t know that it’s smart for me to be in the Kinkle house. Not yet, while everything is so fresh. Tell him I said happy birthday?”

“Of course,” Roz promised.

She left Sabrina alone with Nick once more. She fussed with his blankets again, stoked the fire with magic. Spring was knocking on the door, but it was still chilly out and the Academy was drafty. Nick’s darkened room felt especially chilled although she thought that might be from the lack of life in it at the moment. Hilda came and administered his hourly dose of antidote. Sabrina tried to distract herself by reading, but she kept peeking at Nick, ensuring he was comfortable, that he hadn’t woke up while she dared to read a single page of text. Some time passed before another figure appeared in the doorway.

“How is he?” Prudence asked. She didn’t step into the room but hovered in the doorway.

“The same.”

Prudence sighed at Sabrina’s clipped tone.

“So you’re still angry with me.”

“I’m not sure,” Sabrina answered honestly. “You orchestrated a bet about my virginity, but you did help my family.”

“It was a stupid thing to do,” Prudence admitted. “The bet, I mean. Nicholas knew it from the moment I suggested it. I knew what buttons to push and he caved. But he was the one who ended it, Sabrina. He didn’t want to hurt you. When he says he loves you, he absolutely means it. And you know I’m not one to stand here and talk about things like love.”

“Why do you do it?” Sabrina asked. “Why do you play with people’s emotions like you do? You are too good for that, Prudence. You are too smart, too powerful, for petty, cruel games like betting on someone’s virginity or harrowing or any of the other stupid things you have done.”

“I grew up differently than you,” Prudence reminded her. “I didn’t have what you and Ambrose have – family and such. I’m only just starting to realize I don’t have to push and scratch and claw my way to the top.” She drew back her shoulders, hardly able to believe what she was about to say. “I have been so cruel to you all of these years because I was jealous of you. Your parents may have died, but at least they loved you – at least you had people to care for you after they were gone.”

Sabrina started to see Prudence in a new light.

“I’m sure your mother loved you,” she offered. “I’m sorry you never got to know her. I’m even sorrier you were stuck with Blackwood as a father.”

“Well, nothing we can do about that now, is it?” Prudence asked. “Some father he was in the end. At least I got my sisters out of it. And the twins, I suppose.” She pursed her lips for a moment. “At least I can make different choices now.”

“You can,” Sabrina nodded. “I hope you do.”

An unspoken truce settled between them.

“Give him a chance, Sabrina,” Prudence encouraged. “I don’t think you will regret it.”

When Sabrina was alone with Nick again, she gave him her full attention. He looked so peaceful in his sleep. She had noticed that when he slept beside her. She would wake up in the middle of the night sometimes and take him in. During the day, he seemed like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. In his sleep, that heaviness left. He was able to relax, let his guard down. She hoped he would be able to find some of that peace in his waking life now.

Her fingers inched towards his. Despite how she had been there at his side, fussing over him and taking care of him, she hadn’t held his hand. Her own hurt – her own pride – had gotten in her way. But as she took him in now, she was tired of resisting. She wasn’t sure what would happen when he woke up, but she needed his hand in hers. She needed that connection. She threaded their fingers together.

“I’m here,” she told him. She squeezed his hand. “I will be here when you wake up.” She lifted their joined hands and pressed a kiss to the back of Nick’s. “Once you’re strong again, we can talk,” she promised him. “We can try to figure all of this out. But I’m going to be here, Nick.” She held their linked hands against her cheek and thought about how he struggled with accepting love and support. She doubled down on her promise not to leave his side. “You’re not going to be alone.”

* * *

Nick blinked his eyes open slowly. It took a few moments for things to come into focus. He was in his bedroom at the Academy. That was unexpected. He tried to push himself up to his elbows. He hissed as his back cried out against the movement.

“Nick?”

Sabrina was there. He laid back against his pillows to let the pain ebb as he watched her make her way to his side from where she had been curled up in his armchair.

“Sabrina,” he breathed. When he passed out in woods behind the Kinkle hunting cabin, he had been sure that was it. He had been okay with that. She was safe and his job was done. It wasn’t the ending he had wanted, but he was still happy with it. He was content to leave this world knowing he hadn’t failed her again.

Apparently, things had gone differently.

“You’re awake.” She perched on the edge of his bed. His fingers itched to reach out and touch her, but he didn’t, unsure of where things stood between them. “How are you feeling?”

“Confused,” he answered. “And my back hurts.” He realized then his entire body felt achy. “Actually, everything hurts.”

“Confused as in how you got here?” Sabrina clarified. Nick nodded.

“I was in the woods and now I’m here. How?”

“In a minute.” Sabrina adjusted the blanket around his waist just for something to do. She found she was as nervous as she was relieved now that he was awake. “As for the pain, Hilda said that would happen. The bullet was in you for a long time. The antidote and poultice Theo and Harvey were able to give you did just enough to keep you alive until we could get you here. Hilda has been giving you an antidote every hour on the hour for the last day or so…”

“I’ve been out a full day?” Nick interrupted as he struggled to sit upright. He ignored the pain this time.

“More like a day and a half at this point,” Sabrina confirmed. “Your body needed to rest, start to heal. You will be achy and sore for a while and will need to take the antidote for another couple of days, but you should be as good as new soon.”

“I didn’t think I was going to make it,” Nick admitted. “I was okay with that, so long as you were safe.” He frowned. “You are safe, aren’t you? You’re not hurt? Blackwood is gone? The witch hunters?”

“Slow down,” Sabrina said with a faint smile. She finally took his hand. He immediately wrapped his fingers around hers and held it tight. She noted his strength. It wasn’t quite up to snuff, but it would get there. “I’m okay. Blackwood and the witch hunters are no longer threats. All of us are safe now.”

“The Antipope took Blackwood?” Nick continued.

“You mean your uncle?” Sabrina couldn’t help but ask. Nick half sighed, half cringed. Here was another truth he had omitted from Sabrina.

“He’s my mom’s brother,” he admitted.

“He filled us in on that when he came back to update Zelda on what happened and make her the High Priestess of the Church of Night.”

Nick didn’t look surprised at this news.

“He’s had that plan for a while,” he revealed. “My uncle has had his eyes on the Church of Night for a long time, Sabrina. Zelda wasn’t the only one working for years to uncover what Blackwood’s motives were. He’s always suspected the man had a part in my parents’ deaths and he was especially attached to his little sister, my mother. He wanted to avenge her death, just as much, if not more, than he wanted to protect one of his covens from a deadly fate.”

“Things we’re now learning,” Sabrina muttered.

“I can explain…”

“I’m sure you can,” Sabrina cut him off in a precise but gentle manner. “And I’ll let you. About the Antipope and everything else.” Her pointed look let him know she meant the bet. “But for now, you need to get better. You need to rest.”

“I’m fine…”

“You’re not,” Sabrina stopped him. “You’re weak, Nick. You need to build your strength.”

“I can talk…”

The door cracked open once more. It was Hilda this time.

“Time for another dose…” She stopped in her tracks. “Nicholas! You’re awake!” She hurried to him. “Sabrina, I told you to come get me as soon as he came around!”

“He only woke up a few minutes ago,” Sabrina reported. “He has a lot of questions, but I was just telling him he needs to rest.”

“You do need to rest, Nicholas,” Hilda agreed. “I know you have plenty to discuss, but your body has been through an ordeal. It’s imperative that you rest right now.”

“I’ll stay in bed,” Nick bargained. “But I want to know what happened.”

“I’m sure your uncle will be along soon to fill you in,” Hilda said as she uncorked his antidote. “He asked me to alert him the moment you woke up.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Nick tried.

“I can’t well tell the Antipope no, can I?” she asked.

“No,” Nick agreed with a sigh. “You most certainly cannot.”

“Here, dear,” Hilda offered him a dropper of medicine. “Take the whole thing.” She watched him carefully as he squirted the medicine into his mouth without protest. He sputtered as the acidic liquid hit his tongue. “I know, it’s terrible,” Hilda nodded. “But you will need to take it every hour for another full day, and then we’ll start to taper down over the next few days.”

“It tastes like straight acid,” Nick told her.

“It’s to help burn the holy water out of your system.” Hilda used the back of her hand to check for a fever. “You’re still a bit warm. Let’s check your temperature.”

Nick was at Hilda’s mercy. He let her do whatever she deemed necessary, aware that it was best to let her check him over. If he fought it, she would only dig her heels in more and the longer Hilda was there, the longer it would be before he was alone with Sabrina once more. It was a full half hour before she finished.

“You still have a low-grade fever,” Hilda reported. “That means there is still holy water in your system. I could have fried an egg on your head when Sabrina first got you here though, so you are certainly improving. Your color is back a bit, too. How is the pain?”

“Manageable,” Nick answered. “But not pleasant.”

“I can give you something…”

“No,” he cut her off with a shake of his head. “It will make me sleepy and I’m okay for now.” Hilda considered him. “Really,” he insisted. “I can cope.”

“Fine,” she agreed. “But the moment your pain spikes, you let me know.”

“I will,” Nick promised.

“How about something to eat?” It wasn’t a question. “I have a fresh pot of tomato soup. I’ll make you a grilled cheese. Getting some food in you will help you build some strength back up. Sabrina, love, I’ll bring you a bowl and a sandwich as well. You need to eat.”

She bustled out of the room. Neither of them spoke again until she was gone.

“How does she find time to make soup and grilled cheese?” Nick wondered. “If she’s tending to all of us…”

“She’s her own kind of superhero,” Sabrina offered. “But you heard her, you need to rest.”

“Sabrina…” Nick sighed.

“We need to talk,” she recognized. “I know that. But you have been through a lot, Nick. You need to rest, let your body heal.”

“I would rather talk to you,” he insisted. “I have a lot to explain…”

“You do,” Sabrina agreed. “But it can wait.” Instinct drove her to gently push him to the bed. He allowed her to do so. He had to admit it felt good to lay down. She brushed her fingertips along his cheek. He leaned into the touch. “Rest, okay?”

“I’m sorry, Sabrina,” he told her anyway. “For so much…”

“Later,” she insisted. “Rest now.” She didn’t resist her desire to lean down and kiss his forehead. He closed his eyes against the sweet gesture. He wanted desperately to pull her to him, to have her in his arms again. But he had no idea where they stood – still broken up certainly – and so he wasn’t going to push his luck. “I’ll stay with you, okay?”

“Please,” he nodded.

She returned to the armchair after she had pulled his blankets around him once more. He humored her and stayed put. He could practically feel the antidote cleansing his blood and knitting his insides back together. It wasn’t an altogether pleasant experience. He glanced at Sabrina who had picked up a book of rituals to occupy herself.

Somehow, someway, she had become the center of his world.

He had lived through something that should have killed him. He had a second chance at life.

All he needed now was a second chance with the witch he loved.

* * *

Sabrina let herself into Nick’s room without knocking.

It was empty, his bed hastily made by simply pulling the comforter up over the sheets.

She frowned and glanced towards the bathroom. The door was open, the light off. Nick clearly wasn’t in his bedroom. She spun on her heel and marched through the Academy. Somehow, she knew where she would find him.

She paused in the door of the sanctum and took him in. He was dressed down for him, black jeans and a blue henley, his hair not quite styled yet he had put some effort into it all the same. He was absorbed in a book, his feet kicked up on the table as he leaned back in his chair. She tapped on the doorframe to alert him to her presence.

“Sabrina, hey,” he greeted. He dropped his feet to the floor and sat upright.

“I went to your room, but you weren’t there,” she said lamely.

“Hilda gave me the okay to leave my bed,” he told her. “I’m still taking the antidote, but every three hours now instead of every hour.” He reached into his pocket and removed a small corked bottle. “She even trusted me to take it myself, charmed the bottle so it will get hot in my pocket when it’s time to take it.”

“She will make sure you do,” Sabrina warned him.

“I’m following the rules,” he promised. He took her in. She looked better rested than she had when he had all but kicked her out of his room the night before. She had been with him all day, neither of them speaking much. She read, he dozed. She got him pain potion when he needed it, a fresh glass of water, a snack. He insisted she didn’t need to wait on him, take care of him. She did it anyway. Well after dinner, when it was late and Hilda had checked him over once more, he had told her she needed to get some sleep. He could tell she hadn’t slept well, if at all, the previous two night. He knew she wouldn’t join him in his bed with the way things stood between them, so he insisted she go home. She had left with a wounded look and he had felt terrible about it, but it was for the best. “Did you sleep okay last night?”

“Hilda made me some tea,” she answered.

“I’m pretty sure she put something in mine as well,” he said. “I slept like a rock.”

An awkward silence settled between them. He remained in his seat. Sabrina remained in the doorway. He took a big breath and opened his mouth to say something, ask her to join him, but she beat him to it.

“I thought maybe we could talk,” she ventured. “If you feel up to it.”

“We should talk,” Nick nodded. “I’d like to, anyway.” He used his foot to kick out the chair across from him. “Join me?”

Sabrina stepped into the sanctum, but she didn’t take the chair Nick had intended her to. She rounded the table instead and once she reached him, perched on the table before him. She turned her eyes on him.

“Start from the beginning,” she directed. Nick drew on his courage.

“Prudence and I made the bet…”

“No,” Sabrina shook her head. “The beginning. Why you came to Greendale.”

“The beginning,” Nick repeated. He sat back in his chair. “You talked to my uncle.”

“I heard your uncle’s side of things,” she confirmed. “I want yours. It’s not just the bet, Nick. I feel like I don’t know you at all.”

“I assure you, you know me better than anyone,” he said easily. “I think you know me better than I know myself.”

“Why did you come to Greendale?” she pressed. After hearing the Antipope’s tale, she wasn’t sure what was fact and what was fiction.

“I really was kicked out of several schools,” he told her. “It was a combination of bad behavior and boredom. I knew more than they could teach me, and I got myself in trouble. All of that is true. When I got kicked out of my last school, I returned to the Scratch family compound in the Unholy Land with not much of a plan. I was content to be a wayward warlock. But I got into a spot of trouble. More serious trouble than advanced spells and summoning demons for fun at school.”

“You lost control of a band of demons,” Sabrina stated. She had heard the story from the Antipope.

“They terrorized a nearby mortal village,” Nick nodded. “I managed to capture them all, but not before they had done a fair amount of damage. Any other warlock would have been sentenced to at least centuries in captivity, if not worse, for putting mortals in danger and risking exposing our kind. Being the Antipope’s nephew has it’s perks I suppose – he sent me to Greendale to uncover what Blackwood was up to. If I did that, my crimes would be erased.”

“And now they have been,” Sabrina said. “At least that’s what he said when he returned from taking Blackwood and the witch hunters to the Unholy Land.”

“I’m exonerated,” Nick confirmed. “He came to visit me this morning.”

“You have a cushy job within his council awaiting you,” Sabrina continued. It had been yet another surprise to learn the Antipope had designated an entry level position on his council for Nick, pending his success in Greendale. “But you did say you had no intention of sticking around past your eighteenth birthday.”

“I had an offer,” Nick agreed. “But I turned it down.” Sabrina frowned, but his own lips turned up just a hair. “I plan to stick around Greendale after all.”

Sabrina felt a faint hint of hope bubbling, but she pushed it down. Whether Nick was going to stay or go wasn’t the issue hanging between them.

“So you arrived in Greendale, embedded yourself in the Academy, and then what?” she prodded.

“I got to work,” he answered truthfully. “My uncle wanted me to get in with the Judas Boys from the start, but I refused. I may have a rebellious streak, but I wanted no part in what they were doing. I’ve done some sordid things, but I have never hurt another on purpose, nor do I believe witches are inferior to warlocks. Even I have lines I’m not willing to cross.”

“I believe that.” She truly did. She thought again of how he had cursed Billy at Cee’s early into his Greendale tenure and of how he had boldly spoken about witches deserving equality. She thought his interest in her father’s work had been genuine too.

“I hope you do,” Nick said with sincerity. “I will admit that I intended to have my usual fun when I first arrived. I was intrigued by you from the beginning though. You caught my attention by the way you sang when I walked into that choir room, but you kept it by the way you rolled your eyes at Lady Blackwood. I wanted to know you, so I set out to find you at lunch that day and Sabrina, I just kept falling. Every time I was with you, I fell a little more. I was still fooling around with others at that point, but I wanted you.”

“And then you made that bet with Prudence.” Nick felt her pull away, even if she hadn’t moved away from her spot on the table. He sat forward in an effort to be closer to her.

“I made that bet in a moment of frustration,” he told her. “That night, at Dorian’s, I knew I was in over my head. I thought we were having this great night, that you were finally letting me in. I thought we were about to kiss on the dance floor, but you took off.”

“I was scared,” Sabrina confessed. “I was starting to feel things and I didn’t want to feel them for you, not then.”

“You didn’t want to fall for a warlock with my reputation,” Nick said bluntly. Sabrina saw how the idea hurt him, even as he tried to hide it.

“I’m sorry.” She felt terrible. “I judged you right away and that was wrong. You proved me wrong…” She sighed. “But then I found out I was a bet and now I don’t know what to think.”

“I get it,” Nick nodded even though it hurt to admit it to himself. “I did have a reputation and you aren’t wrong to question my motives.” He put his hand on her knee. She didn’t pull away. “After you left that night, I went to the bar for a drink. I was freaking out, Sabrina. I had been turned down before…”

“Sure,” she gave him a look.

“Not often,” Nick confessed. “But in the past, I would just blow it off and move on. That night, I was trying to understand why I felt so dejected. I didn’t really understand it at the time, but it was because I genuinely liked you and your rejection stung. When Prudence suggested that bet, I knew it was wrong, but I took it because my pride got in the way.”

“Do you know how much it hurt to find out you made a bet about my virginity?” Sabrina asked him outright. Nick hung his head in shame. “I understand that witches and warlocks view sex a heaven of a lot different than mortals, but not me. Losing my virginity means something to me, Nick. I want my first time to be with someone who loves and cherishes me, not someone who wants me for one night just to win a bet.”

It was too much for Nick. He stood and paced a few steps away. He stopped, his back to her, his hands on his hips. He closed his eyes and took a big breath in an effort to calm the storm of guilt that churned inside of him. It was still a struggling for him, feeling so much and not always understanding it all. He was learning, but it was overwhelming sometimes. When he turned back to her nearly a full minute later, she sat in the same spot with an expectant look.

“I knew I was in love with you that first night of Lupercalia,” he shared. “I knew I felt something for you, but love was such a foreign feeling for me before you. Lying on the ground with you in my arms after we kissed for the first time, I knew I was in love and it scared the living Heaven out of me. I called the bet off the morning after the Valentine’s dance. I couldn’t do it, Sabrina. I couldn’t allow things to progress between us, love you, with that bet hanging over me.”

“You should have told me,” she stated.

“I should have never made that bet,” he corrected. “But I did, and I can’t change that. I called it off because I love you. Because I respect you. Because as much as I want that physical connection with you, I absolutely couldn’t allow us to cross that line without first ending the bed and then telling you the truth. And I tried to tell you, Sabrina. Twice. We got interrupted both times. But I would have told you.”

“I don’t know what to believe,” she admitted. “I want to believe you love me. After everything you did for me…”

“I want you to believe the truth,” he told her with emphasis on ‘truth.’ “And the truth is, I love you. I didn’t want the first time I told you to be when I was trying to plead my case in the aftermath of you finding out about the bet, but I meant every word – I love you. I want another chance with you. I want to show you how sincere I am in my feelings, that things between us were never a lie.”

He came to stand in front of her. He took her hands in his and felt relief when she let him.

“When I was chained to that bed in the Kinkle’s cabin, all I could think about was you. I didn’t care if I lived or died, as long as you were safe. I love you, Sabrina. I will do whatever it takes to show you that and earn your forgiveness. You can tell me right here, right now, that you want nothing to do with me. But I won’t accept it. I will keep fighting for you until I have exhausted every option.”

He said his piece and waited. He watched Sabrina’s eyes fill with tears she blinked away.

“I want to give you that chance,” she started. Nick caught his breath, hardly able to believe his good luck. “But you hurt me, Nick.”

“I know…” he started.

“No,” Sabrina cut him off gently but firmly. “You don’t know, Nick. But I believe you when you say you’re sorry…”

“I am. I am so sorry, Sabrina…”

“And I believe you when you say you love me…”

“I do…”

“I have feelings for you, Nick.” Nick faltered. He hadn’t expected her to return any sort of sentiment, not right now. He certainly didn’t think he deserved it. “I want us to have a chance to see where this thing between us goes.”

“All I need is a chance,” he rushed in. “That’s all I need, Sabrina. One more chance.”

“But my trust in you is shaky right now.” It was one of the most honest things she had ever said. “I can’t just dive right back into this thing between us. I need some time and I need us to rewind a bit, take things slow.” She took in how he looked at her. A storm raged in his eyes. She saw it all – love, hurt, guilt, shame. The intensity there only reaffirmed that she was making the right choice to allow him the chance he so desperately wanted, the chance she wanted to give him. “I feel like I need to get to know you again.”

“I don’t expect you to trust me,” he shook his head. “You may not want to hear me make promises right now, but I’m going to promise you that I will earn your trust back. I won’t mess this up again. You mean too much to me.” He squeezed her hands. “I can’t lose you again.”

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Nick’s neck as his went around her waist. He closed his eyes and breathed her in. He felt grounded now, settled. All because of her.

“I’m sorry,” he said into her hair. He couldn’t apologize enough.

“You have to tell me the truth from now on,” she requested. “Nothing else.”

“Always,” he promised.

He held her for a bit longer before they finally separated. He was surprised when Sabrina perched back on the desk.

“So, the antipope is your uncle,” she said conversationally.

“Having the antipope pope for an uncle isn’t the same as you having your aunts,” he reminded her. “He isn’t known for being warm and cuddly. Once the council found Amalia and I, he took me in, but only in name. He shipped me off to school pretty much the day after they found me. I didn’t mind – I would rather learn than be left to wander the Unholy Land compound. Every time I got in trouble, he got a little more pissed off until I finally took it too far.”

“So he sent you here.”

“He sent me here,” Nick nodded. “He needed someone on the inside and who better than a young warlock with more power than he knew what to do with? My uncle accurately predicted Blackwood would be intrigued, and he was.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Sabrina wanted to know. “As we got closer and as you learned what my family thought about Blackwood and our desire to get rid of him, why didn’t you fess up that you were already here to do the same thing? That you thought Blackwood had your parents killed? Why did Blackwood have your parents killed anyway?”

She had so many questions.

“My dad was a high priest,” Nick reminded her. “Part of the reason I was interested in your dad’s work was because my dad was interested in it. Edward was making a lot of connections, really getting people excited about his manifesto. My dad was one of three high priests willing to enact his beliefs. My dad was already running our coven with similar practices in some ways. He didn’t think women were inferior for one thing. Blackwood had my parents killed, but if you do enough digging, you will find other high priests died around that same time, all in different manners, some an accident, some not.”

“And your uncle wanted to avenge your mother’s death.”

“My grandparents were well into their final centuries when my mom came around. She was a bit of a marvel in that way – that she was born to them so late in life. My uncle was a mere council member at the time, but he took to her. He’s not an affectionate man, but he had a soft spot for her. Her death devastated him.”

“That must be why he was so lenient with you,” Sabrina mused. “Losing control of a bunch of demons is a pretty high offense in our world.”

“I think it helped that I was her son,” Nick admitted. “I’ve been told I look a lot like her, and he thought highly of my dad as well. But I was also just what he needed to get insight into Blackwood.”

“I still don’t understand why you didn’t say something,” Sabrina shook her head. “We wanted the same thing, had the same goals.”

“Ambrose knew,” Nick admitted. “I appealed to my uncle on his behalf.”

Sabrina was shocked.

“You did?”

“Ambrose deserved his freedom,” Nick nodded. “He’ a good person and a gifted warlock. He was wasting away in that mortuary and I knew he would be an asset to bringing Blackwood down, especially once he knew his family was at risk. It took a couple of conferences with my uncle, but he agreed, and Ambrose is free now.”

“You did that for Ambrose?” Sabrina clarified.

“It was the right thing to do,” Nick said. “As for why I didn’t tell you, I couldn’t. I needed to stick to the story as tightly as I could. I got in pretty deep, Sabrina. I was already here undercover for my uncle, then I got involved with you and put myself directly in Blackwood’s inner circle. One slip of my story and it could have all fallen apart. It was safer for you to not know the whole truth. Besides, my uncle demanded I keep things to myself, especially when he found out you and I were getting closer. He didn’t want to chance tipping Blackwood off, not when we were so close to catching him.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Sabrina said. “I wish you would have told me though.”

“I know you do, but I do think it was safer for you not to know, Sabrina, and while I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the whole truth, I’m not sorry my decisions were made with your safety in mind.”

Sabrina couldn’t deny he was right. Nick had a tangled web of lies to keep straight. The more he shared about his uncle and involvement with Blackwood, the more tangled things would have gotten. One slip up, and he would have been dead – she and her family could have been, too.

“Next thing, then. What were you doing in the woods when Harvey’s grandfather shot you?”

“Blackwood sent me on a farce of a hunt for a wolf. He said he needed it for some sort of ritual. In hindsight, I now know he made sure there wasn’t a wolf to be had and sent me right into the heart of the Kinkle’s hunting property.”

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” Sabrina shook her head. “You may have been here to do your uncle’s bidding, but you were in that position with the Kinkles because of me…”

“Hey, none of that,” he cut her off by placing a hand on her cheek. “I made my choices. My end goal was always the same – end Blackwood – but my priorities shifted. You were the most important thing to me. You _are_ the most important thing to me. Don’t apologize for what Blackwood and the Kinkles did.”

“They won’t hurt any of us anymore,” Sabrina ventured.

“No,” Nick agreed. He brushed his thumb over her cheek. “When I talked to my uncle, he said the witch hunters had already been taken care of.”

He watched her as she absorbed the news. The vast majority of Harvey’s family had been wiped out with one spell just hours earlier. She blew out a breath and nodded.

“We knew that was going to happen,” she mused. “I hate it for Harvey, but they would have just come after us again. And Harvey still has his father at least.”

“Harvey really came through for us,” Nick agreed. “Him and Theo. I wouldn’t be here without them.”

“I was terrified,” Sabrina admitted. “Zelda and I left the mortuary to go to the Academy after we learned you were being held hostage and that Blackwood had poisoned the coven. I felt guilty, like I was choosing the coven over you.”

“There is nothing to be guilt about,” Nick shook his head. “You chose many over one. That was the right choice, Sabrina. I didn’t want you anywhere near that cabin anyway.”

“You were so sick.” Tears flooded Sabrina’s eyes. She was finally processing everything that had happened now that the adrenaline had worn off and Nick and the remaining coven members were recovering. “I was afraid you weren’t going to make it.”

“I didn’t think I was,” Nick admitted. “I thought I was going to die in that cabin, and then again in those woods. I was shocked to wake up in my bedroom yesterday.”

“I don’t think I could have handled it if anything had happened to you,” Sabrina continued. “Especially not when things were so messy between us.” She looked into his eyes. “Every time you apologized and said you loved me in the woods, it felt like you wanted to make sure it was the last thing you said to me.”

“That was my intention, Sabrina.” Nick brushed her hair away from her face. “I didn’t want to die without telling you how I felt about you.”

Her bottom lip trembled.

“I’m so glad you didn’t die, Nick.”

He moved to stand between her legs and pull her into his arms.

“I am too.” The way she folded into him made him feel hopeful. “I have you, Sabrina.” Her arms tightened around him. “I lived so I could tell you I love you again and again.” He dared to press a kiss to her hair despite their deal to take things slow. “And I will. I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we have it. Nick's real reasons for being in Greendale - trying to get himself out of trouble and avenge his parents, all at the same time. Just so happened to fall in love while he was there. :) 
> 
> Only one more update left - so crazy to believe! 
> 
> Thank you for reading and commenting - it really does mean the world to me (I know I say that all the time), but especially when I'm swamped with schoolwork and preparing to move across the country. This is my reprieve, even if I'm dreadfully behind in commenting on all of your amazing works. I'll catch up, promise! 
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this one!


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are. The last chapter. <3

Nick stood in the yard and peered at the little square house with a critical eye. He thought it might have been white at some point in the past but age and neglect hard turned it yellow. It needed a new roof and the porch steps could stand to be replaced. The home fit its resident. 

He muttered his spell and waited. A minute or two passed before Harvey opened the door. He looked around, expecting to see someone on the porch. Just before he closed the door, Nick cleared his throat to draw Harvey’s attention to the edge of the property line. Harvey stepped out on the porch and closed the door. 

“I thought it best that I didn’t come to the door,” Nick said by way of greeting. “I’m not sure your father would want to see me.” 

“What are you doing here?” Harvey asked. He stepped off the porch and stopped several yards away from Nick. 

“I wanted to thank you.” Nick wasted no time in getting right to the point of his visit. This was entirely out of his comfort zone and not something he had done before. “You saved my life. Sabrina’s too, which is far more valuable than mine. There is no way I can repay you for that, but I wanted to thank you all the same.” 

“Theo helped,” Harvey replied. He shifted his weight and shoved his hands in his pocket, entirely uncomfortable with the exchange. He may have helped the warlock, but he still wasn’t sure what he thought of them. “Besides, it was the right thing to do.” 

“It was,” Nick nodded. “I just came from Theo’s, actually.” He grinned a bit. “I helped him and his dad feed cows.” Harvey chuckled at the mere thought of Nicholas Scratch doing anything like manual labor, let alone farm labor. “I know you and I didn’t exactly get off on the right foot, Kinkle. But things change. Perhaps not now, while everything is fresh, but maybe down the road we can all be friends.. 

“That wouldn’t be the worst thing,” Harvey ventured. 

“It would mean a lot to Sabrina,” Nick continued. 

“It would,” Harvey agreed. “Especially since I date Roz and Roz is her best friend.” 

An awkward silence fell between them. Nick broke it after a few painful moments. 

“How is your dad?” 

“I think he’s in a state of shock,” Harvey answered. He glanced back at the house as though expecting to see his father standing on the porch or looking out the window. There was no sign of the elder Kinkle. “He was like this after Tommy died. Near catatonic while he processes everything. At least he’s not drinking this time. It helps that he can’t go anywhere to get anything to drink and that I’m not old enough to buy it for him.” 

“If you need anything…” Nick offered. Harvey only nodded. Another awkward beat of silence passed between them. “I guess I’ll be on my way…” 

“How are you?” Harvey blurted out as though he had to work up the courage to ask. “You weren’t doing so well when Sabrina took you away from the cabin and Roz said you were still unconscious when she was at the Academy…” 

“I’m better,” Nick told him. “No more antidote needed, almost back to full strength. I’ll be as good as new in another day or two.” 

“It’s only been a few days,” Harvey said. “Do warlocks heal faster than mortals?” Nick smiled at the innocent question. Theo had had plenty of them too. 

“We do. It’s the magic in our blood. And Hilda is a bit of a miracle worker.” 

“How is Sabrina?” Harvey continued. “Is she okay?” 

“She’s okay,” Nick confirmed. “She’s been hanging out with Roz today.” Harvey nodded. He knew this. “That’s good. She needs that, needs to be with her friends.” 

“They both do,” Harvey said. “Maybe, down the road, when we’re all friends again, we can do one of those double date things.” 

“You asking me on a date, Kinkle?” Nick replied because he couldn’t help himself. Harvey flushed pink. 

“No! No. No, nothing like that. I was thinking you and Sabrina, me and Roz…” Nick chuckled at Harvey’s flustered explanation. 

“Relax, Kinkle. I knew what you meant.” 

Harvey considered Nick once he got past his surprise. 

“You care about Sabrina.” 

“I will do anything for her,” Nick confirmed. “I love her.” 

“You made that pretty clear,” Harvey nodded. “Take care of her, Scratch.” 

“I will,” he promised. “And speaking of Sabrina, she’s expecting me. I should get going.” He gave Harvey a polite nod of his head. “See you around, Kinkle.” 

He teleported away and arrived at the Spellman mortuary. He couldn’t help but feel just a little excited. He was taking Sabrina on a date and he was hopeful. It had been a week since their talk in the sanctum and he thought things were going okay between them. They had spent a lot of time together both at the Academy and at the mortuary and even ventured to Cee’s together a couple of days earlier. He had asked her on a date as they walked home, and she had agreed with a smile that left him practically floating. He smiled at the memory as he climbed the porch stairs. He raised his fist to knock, only to have the door thrown open. A beaming Sabrina stood on the other side of it. 

“Hi,” she greeted. 

“Hey,” he replied with a smile of his own. “I intended to knock.” 

“I was waiting for you.” She practically vibrated with excitement. Nick’s suspicion rose. He was looking forward to their date too, but Sabrina’s exuberance seemed like a little too much for what they had planned. “Come inside.” She tugged his hand. 

“I feel like I’m missing something,” he said as he followed her. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to our date, too. But you’re a little too enthusiastic to be going to dinner and a movie.” 

“Don’t be so suspicious.” She popped herself up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. It made him grin and he thought maybe even blush a little. “My aunts are in the kitchen. Come say hi.” 

She left him no choice. She caught his hand and pulled him towards the kitchen. She paused just inside the door and grinned at him. It took Nick a moment to process the scene before him. 

Zelda and Hilda were there, as was Ambrose and Prudence and Theo and Roz. Balloons floated over the kitchen table, not too many, but enough to make it festive. The table was set for eight and the smell of one of Hilda’s roasts hung in the air. He looked to Sabrina. 

“What…” 

She was positively glowing. 

“Happy birthday!” she beamed. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to take a rain check on our date.” 

“This… Is for me?” Nick clarified. 

“Of course it is, love,” Hilda piped up. “It’s your eighteenth birthday. Can’t let that go uncelebrated now, can we?” 

“I just…” 

He had honestly forgotten it was his birthday when he woke up that morning. He had remembered around lunchtime but dismissed the thought as quickly as it came. He hadn’t celebrated his birthday in years. 

“Are we going to eat or are we going to stand here smelling the roast while our stomachs growl?” Ambrose asked. He grinned as Zelda rolled her eyes. “Happy birthday, mate,” he added to Nick. 

“Thank you,” Nick replied, still in shock that this set up was for him. 

“Dinner is nearly ready,” Hilda said even as she smacked Ambrose’s hand away from the roast. “Just waiting on the rolls to finish.” 

“Ambrose, be useful and pour us all a drink,” Zelda directed. “Happy birthday, Nicholas.” 

“Thank you,” he said again. He knew he sounded a bit robotic, but a birthday party was the last thing he was expecting. Sabrina watched him curiously. 

“You okay?” she asked quietly. 

“Just surprised,” he answered. “This… No one has really done anything like this for me, not since my parents died.” 

“You deserve this,” Sabrina told him. She squeezed his hand. “Come on. Ambrose will make your drink first. It is your birthday after all.” 

“The usual bourbon?” Ambrose guessed. 

“Please,” Nick nodded. 

“Wait, do witches and warlocks have a different drinking age than mortals?” Theo wondered. 

“Witches and warlocks have more relaxed standards,” Zelda clarified. “Ambrose? I’ll take gin.” 

“Anything for the mortals?” Ambrose asked. 

Roz and Theo exchanged looks then both shook their heads. 

“I drove us here,” Roz said. 

“And I don’t trust myself,” Theo added. 

“Fair,” Ambrose shrugged and continued pouring drinks. “Sabrina? What will it be?” 

“Red wine,” she said. “But I need to help Hilda with the roast.” 

“I’ll get your drink,” Nick assured her. 

“Thank you.” She kissed his cheek once more and drifted off. He smiled after her as he accepted his drink from Ambrose. 

“Happy birthday, Nicky,” came Prudence’s voice. Nick turned to face her.

“Thanks Prudence,” he nodded. Things between them were still tense, although enough of a thaw had settled in that he didn’t feel the need to kick her out of his party. He hadn’t missed that Sabrina and Prudence had called a truce. If Sabrina was willing to give him another chance and be on friendly enough terms with Prudence too, he could do the same. “No sisters tonight?” 

He didn’t exactly miss Dorcas and Agatha but asking about them was an olive branch. 

“They are still recovering,” Prudence said. “I’m sure they will be back to themselves soon.” A baby cried. “That will be Leticia. Judas won’t be far behind her.” As though on cue, a second wailing joined in. “Excuse me while I help Zelda tend to them.” 

Nick ventured over to Theo and Roz. 

“Did you know about this when I was over earlier?” he asked Theo. 

“I did,” Theo admitted. “Sabrina has been plotting this for a few days now.” 

“She’s really excited about it,” Roz added. She had seen a vision of Nick looking overwhelmed by it all earlier in the day that had proven true. She wanted to assure him that Sabrina wanted this for him. Nick looked across the room and watched Sabrina as she moved rolls from a baking sheet to a breadbasket. 

“I could tell when she met me at the door,” he said. “She was practically vibrating. I was looking forward to taking her on a date, but this works too.” 

“You two are going to be okay,” Roz assured him. “Don’t ask me how I know.” She and Nick exchanged a smile just as Hilda called them to dinner. 

“I hope roast is okay,” Hilda fretted. “Sabrina said it was one of your favorites and insisted it be what I served when she asked if I would cook dinner tonight. 

“She’s right,” Nick confirmed as Sabrina came to his side. “Your roast is second to none.” He pressed a kiss to Sabrina’s hair. He wanted to do more, but he hadn’t kissed her since they broke up and he wouldn’t take the chance now in front of her family in case it wasn’t what she wanted. He refused to mess things up by moving too fast. “Thank you, Hilda. I had no idea…” 

“It wouldn’t be a surprise if you did, would it?” she asked with a twinkle in her eye. “Have a seat, just here at the head of the table. It’s your birthday – you’re the guest of honor!” She pulled out his chair and shuffled away. 

“It feels weird to sit at the head of the table,” Nick worried to Sabrina. 

“You heard Hilda – you’re the guest of honor,” she said. She took him in. “Are you okay?” she asked again. “You seem nervous.” Her eyes widened. “Did I take it too far? I was just trying to make sure you had a great birthday…” 

“This is perfect,” he assured her with a gentle hand on her cheek. “It’s overwhelming, but in a good way.” He settled for a kiss on her cheek. They had kissed one another’s cheeks a couple dozen times in the last several days and It was rapidly becoming not enough, especially right now. 

They settled down to dinner, Prudence and Zelda returning with a baby each. Nick reached under the table halfway through his roast to squeeze Sabrina’s knee in a show of affection. She smiled at him and bumped his ankle with her toe in the same manner. 

When dinner was over, Sabrina placed a cake – chocolate, another one of Nick’s favorite Hilda concoctions – in front of him and led a round of Happy Birthday that made him full on blush. Yet all he could think about as she sang was the first time he met her. He was finally able to steal a few minutes alone with her once the cake and ice cream had been devoured. 

“You’re pretty incredible, Spellman,” he said as he pulled her into the study. 

“I’ll have you know this is truly my bare minimum,” she said as she looped her arms around his neck. “I knew you wouldn’t want a big fuss, so I kept it tame.” 

“This is more of a fuss than I’m used to,” he said for the second time that night as his own arms encircled her. “Thank you for this, Sabrina. This means a lot to me.” 

It meant everything to him. 

“This is what girlfriends do,” she said. “We throw birthday parties for our boyfriends.” 

“Girlfriend, huh?” he asked with a grin. “I like the sound of that.” His eyes fell on her lips. There was no time like the present for him to kiss her again – finally. He started to lean in. Sabrina closed her eyes in anticipation. 

“How about some hot chocolate?” came Hilda’s voice. “As a bit of a night cap before everyone heads home?” 

Nick sighed and Sabrina’s eyes opened. They traded a shy smile. 

“Hot chocolate would be great,” Sabrina called back. An idea came to Nick. He took her hand and tugged her out into the hallway with him. 

“Actually, Hilda, would you mind if I made it?” he asked. Sabrina looked to him in surprise. She knew what he was going to do. 

“Oh, Nicholas, it’s your birthday, love,” Hilda dismissed. “I wouldn’t want to put you to work.” 

“I insist,” he said. “Consider it a birthday gift.” 

“You’re really going for the jugular now, Nicholas,” Hilda said. “Oh, all right. Have at it. Anything you need should be in the kitchen. If you can’t find it, just call for me or Sabrina. Don’t bother with Zelda or Ambrose. Zelda only knows where the martini ingredients are and Ambrose seems to only appear once the food is ready.” 

“Thank you,” Nick nodded. “I promise not to make too big of a mess of your kitchen.” 

“Want some help?” Sabrina offered. 

“No thanks,” Nick shook his head. “I want to do this on my own.” 

Sabrina understood. She nodded and let him walk away. 

“He’s rather serious about his hot chocolate,” Hilda mused when it was just the pair of them. 

“His mom used to make him hot chocolate when he had a bad day or to celebrate good things,” Sabrina shared. “He made me her recipe once. It’s a really big deal for him to share it with us.” A thought occurred to Sabrina. “Don’t make a big deal out of it though, okay? Don’t even let him know you know it’s his mom’s recipe. Nick doesn’t always know how to share what he’s feeling and this is his way of saying thank you to us. Let him serve hot chocolate, tell him how good it is, and leave it there.” 

“Yes, ma’am,” Hilda saluted her. Sabrina gave her a look. Hilda chuckled. “You have been in a tizzy all day about making sure all of this went off without a hitch for dear Nicholas. I certainly won’t cross you now, madam drill sergeant.”

“I haven’t been that bad…” 

“You have been a tyrant,” Hilda told her. “A small one, but a tyrant all the same.” 

“Thank you for doing this,” Sabrina relented. “I know I was a little high strung, but I wanted everything to be perfect. He hasn’t had a lot of good memories in the last several years.” 

“No need to thank me, dear,” Hilda shook her head. “I was happy to do it. Nicholas risked his life for this family. He made a mistake with that bet nonsense, but he would have given his life for you. Nearly did, in fact. Making him a roast on his birthday after all of that is the least I can do.” 

“He did get Ambrose out of our hair,” Sabrina mused. “It’s rather pleasant, not having him sulking around here all day.” 

“Why do you think I made the cake an extra layer high?” Hilda countered. Sabrina laughed heartedly. A baby cried. “My turn, I think.” She drifted off. 

Sabrina joined Roz and Theo in the parlor and waited for Nick to return with his hot chocolate. It was the hit she expected it to be and Hilda was true to her word not to let on that she understood just how big of a moment this was. It was Nick’s way of showing his appreciation to the Spellmans. 

It felt like forever to Sabrina before the hot chocolate was gone and she had walked Theo and Roz out. Ambrose and Prudence had disappeared, and Hilda and Zelda were preoccupied with the babies. She finally had Nick all to herself. 

“Come upstairs with me?” she requested. 

“I’ll follow you anywhere, Spellman.” She winked at him and led the way upstairs. In her room, she went to her vanity and picked up a neatly wrapped package. She held it out to him. “For you. Happy Birthday, Nick.” 

Nick took the wrapped present like it was something precious. 

“You didn’t have to get me anything,” he said. “You already did so much with the dinner…” 

“It’s your birthday,” Sabrina silenced him with a finger held to his lips. “I told you – this is what we do. The Spellmans are known for their big celebrations. I’m simply easing you into it this year. Next year there will be more balloons. Streamers too.” 

“Next year?” Nick repeated as hope bubbled in his chest. “It sounds like you’re suggesting that I might be around for a while to come.” 

“I wouldn’t rule it out,” Sabrina said seriously. “Open your gift!” 

Nick chuckled at her returned excitement and took a seat on the edge of her bed. The wrapping was almost too beautiful to mess up, but he was admittedly curious as to what Sabrina had picked out for him. He pulled the paper away to reveal a thick black leather covered book. He opened it curiously. His eyes grew big. 

“This is your father’s journal…” 

“That is all of his journals,” Sabrina corrected. “I took some inspiration from you and duplicated his originals but put them all in one book. I figured anyone who could perform one of his spells to stop Blackwood deserves to have all of his work at their fingertips.” 

“Sabrina…” Nick was speechless. “I can’t accept this. This is your father’s work…” 

“You can accept it,” Sabrina said gently. “You pulled one of his spells out of memory, Nick. You singlehandedly stopped Blackwood…” 

“Not singlehandedly,” Nick interrupted with a shake of his head. “You were right there, holding my hand and chanting with me. I would have never been able to do it alone, not as weak as I was by the time Blackwood showed up.” 

“It was your idea,” she reminded him. “You taught me the spell. If you weren’t injured, you would have been able to do it all on your own. I want you to have my father’s work to read, reference.” She bit her lip nervously for a moment. “Maybe we could try some of his spells – together.” 

“I’d like that,” Nick said softly as his finger rang over the binding. “Thank you, Sabrina. This is the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever given me.” He thumbed the pages, lost in thought for a beat. “Honestly, it’s the first gift anyone has given me since my parents died.” 

That broke Sabrina’s heart. She leaned forward to kiss his cheek – she had lost count of how many times she had done that tonight alone – and promised herself it wouldn’t be the last time Nick received a present. 

“Theo said you stopped by to thank him earlier today,” she ventured.

“I went to Harvey’s as well,” he shared. Sabrina’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “The least I could do was say thank you. I would have died in that cabin without them.” Sabrina didn’t like to think about what could have happened. “They saved me. They helped save you, your family.”

“It was nice of you to go see them. I know that wasn’t the easiest thing for you.”

“Maybe not the easiest, but it was the right thing to do,” Nick said. “I felt better afterward.” He pressed a kiss to her hair as her head lulled against his shoulder. “Harvey and I decided we might even be friends. One day.”

“I’d like that,” Sabrina smiled softly.

“That’s what I said.” He shrugged. “Technically Harvey said it, but I was thinking it. It might take some time for all of this to blow over, but I would humor him if we were to hang out.”

“Maybe in a few weeks,” Sabrina said. “When summer break is here and we’re free of academia for a while.”

“He asked me on a date,” Nick continued. Sabrina lifted her head and looked at him.

“What?”

Nick chuckled. 

“He was bumbling over his words about me and you and him and Roz going on a double date and I couldn’t resist the opportunity.” Sabrina shook her head in amusement and lowered her head back to his shoulder. “He asked me to take care of you. I promised I would.” 

“That goes two ways, you know,” Sabrina lifted her head once more. “You’re not alone anymore, Nick. If you’re staying in Greendale…” 

“I am,” he cut her off. “I’m not leaving. Not after I’ve found – everything – here.” She smiled at his passionate statement. 

“Then you’re going to have to get used to having people around who care about you,” she finished. 

“I’m grateful you gave me another chance, Sabrina,” he said solemnly. “I know we have a lot to work on, but I’m all in. I swear I will be honest with you from here on out. And in the name of being honest…” He grinned. “I really want to kiss you, Sabrina Spellman.” 

Sabrina beamed. 

“I suggest you better,” she informed him. “I’ve been waiting all night.” 

Nick didn’t need further instruction. He cupped her cheek, leaned in, and pressed his kips to hers. Somehow, he found himself on his back, Sabrina on top of him, his hands firmly on her hips to hold her to him. He had no recollection of how it happened, but passion between the pair of them had never been the problem. 

“Spellman,” he breathed between kisses. “We should stop.” 

“Why?” she wanted to know as she returned her lips to his. 

“Taking it slow,” he managed. “You’re doing a number on me.” Sabrina giggled a bit and kissed him one more time before she slipped off of him and tucked herself in his arms. “Heaven of a way to end my birthday, though.” 

“It wasn’t awful,” Sabrina agreed. “I’m sorry I commandeered our date though. I know you were looking forward to it.” 

“Trust me, Spellman, I’m not upset about how things worked out.” He kissed her hair again. “But I want to take you on that date all the same. Tomorrow, perhaps?” 

“Tomorrow,” Sabrina agreed. She propped herself up and took Nick in. He lay there next to her, watching her with the most adoring look on his features. She knew he loved her. She felt it in his every touch, his every word, saw it in the looks he gave her that he didn’t know she caught. 

She knew, too, that despite everything, she loved him, too. 

She leaned down and pecked his lips. 

“I love you, Nick.” 

His eyes grew big. 

“Really?” he squeaked out. He cleared his throat and tried to recover as she beamed at his reaction. “Sorry, I just – I’m surprised. I didn’t expect…” 

“Someday, words like ‘I love you’ won’t scare you,” she promised him. “They won’t surprise you or make you automatically try to reject them because you think you don’t deserve them. Someday, hopefully soon, it will be as natural as breathing for you to hear those words.” 

“It’s not that it scares me,” Nick chanced. “It’s that I didn’t expect to hear you say those words yet. I wanted to hear them – I have prayed to Satan that you might feel the same way pretty much since the choir room on day one – but it’s only been a week since you agreed to give me another chance. I didn’t think you would say those words anytime soon, not after I hurt you like I did…” 

Sabrina brushed her fingers across his cheek. 

“I love you,” she said again. “Maybe we are still working on this whole trust thing, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room there to love you.” 

Nick lifted his head and kissed her. 

“I love you, Spellman,” he assured her. “More than you will ever know.” She beamed. 

“You know, I don’t want to send you home quite yet,” she ventured. “You could stay here tonight…” 

“Or you could come back to the Academy with me,” Nick chanced. “Now that Blackwood is gone…” 

“I like that idea,” Sabrina said without debate. She untangled herself before Nick had time to react and quickly rushed into her bathroom to wash her face and change into something more comfortable. She returned and stood in the center of her room while Nick lounged on her bed. “Teleport me, Scratch?” 

“I’m really grateful this portal still works,” Nick said as he got to his feet. “My place it is.” 

Later, with Sabrina asleep in his arms and his room dark and peaceful, Nick realized he felt – happy. 

The weight of the world was on his shoulders when he arrived in Greendale a few months earlier. He hadn’t wanted to be there, but he had no choice. It was do his uncle’s bidding or live a life in confinement without magic. He had bolstered himself by reminding himself constantly that he was doing this to avenge his mother, his father. Keeping his magic and getting another chance at freedom was the icing on the cake. 

Then he met Sabrina. 

Life got messy for a while, but he had another chance at not just his freedom, but with Sabrina. He pressed a kiss to her forehead a she slept. 

“I love you, Spellman,” he whispered through the dark. “You taught me how to love. 

He fell asleep hoping she knew what he believed deep in his very soul. 

This was forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end. A little Narvey - holding out hope for them to be buds in Part 4 - and a sweet little Nabrina scene. Thank you for reading this. I hope you enjoyed it and aren't tired of me yet. 
> 
> Up next? A completely self-indulgent mini Christmas fic in which Nick is an absolute high maintenance city boy and Sabrina is an enigma to him. There's also something about the Putnam farm... 
> 
> Thank you again for reading. I <3 every last one of you.

**Author's Note:**

> We're all set up now, aren't we? I'm really enjoying having Blackwood as an antagonist. I've never really written Nick in his carefree warlock days either which is fun to explore. Sabrina is rather unimpressed by it, however... And she's still quite the rabble rouser in her own right. 
> 
> Up next, the Fright Club shows up, Nick does a bit of magic, and perhaps... a sleepover?
> 
> Thanks for reading and letting me post another! Let me know what you thought of update no. 1!


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